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GUATEMALA 


THE  COUNTRY  OF  THE  FUTURE 


PORTRAIT  OF  HIS  EXCELLENCY 
PRESIDENT  DON  MANUEL  ESTRADA  CABRERA. 


GUATEMALA 


THE  COUNTRY  OF  THE  FUTURE 


A  MONOGRAPH 


BY 

CHARLES  M.  PEPPER 


WASHINGTON,  D.  C 
1906 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER.  PAGE. 

I.  A  Brief  Description 9 

II.  A  Progressive  President  and  his  Policies 20 

III.  The  Soil  and  its  Riches 30 

IV.  Trade  and  Markets 45 

V.  Climate  and  Immigration 56 

VI.  International  Relations   64 

VII.  The  Land  of  Travel  and  History 70 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS, 

Portrait  of  His    Excellency  President   Don  Manuel 

Estrada  Cabrera Frontispiece 

Monument  to  Columbus Opposite   16 

President  and  Members  of  Cabinet 24 

Vista  of  Aguna  Plantation "         32 

Bridge  over  Motagua  River 40 

Street  in  Escuintla "         60 

Plaza  of  Jocotenango,  Guatemala  City 68 

Landscape  of  Guastotoy     River "          72 


158578 


PUBLIC  OFFICIALS. 


President  and  Cabinet. 

Senor  DON  MANUEL,  ESTRADA  CABRERA, 
President  of  the  Republic. 

Senor  DON  JUAN  BARRIOS.  M. 
Minister  of  Foreign  Relations. 

Senor  DON  JUAN  J.  ARGUETA, 
Minister  of  Government  and  Justice. 

Senor  DON  JOSE  FLAMENCO, 
Minister  of  Public  Improvement  (Fomento). 

Senor  GENERAL  DON  Luis  MOLINA, 
Minister  of  War. 

Senor  DON  GUILLERMO  AGUIRRE, 
Minister  of  the  Treasury. 

Senor  DON  J.  ANTONIO  MANDUJANO, 
Minister  of  Public  Instruction. 


MINISTER  AND  CONSULS  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES. 


Senor  DON  JORGE  MUNOZ, 

Envoy    Extraordinary    and    Minister    Plenipotentiary, 
Highlands,  Washington,  D.  C. 

JOAQUIN  YELA, 
Consul    General,    2    Stone    St.,    New    York    City. 

D.   KINGSLAND, 
Consul  General,   1521  N.   nth  St.,  St.  Louis,  Mo. 

FELIPE  GALICIA  V., 
Consul  General,  421   Market  St.,  San  Francisco,   CaL 

C.  MORTON  STEWART,  Jr., 
Consul  General,  Baltimore,  Md. 

JULIO  NOVELLA, 

Consul  General,   P.   O.   Box   1374,   New  Orleans,   La. 

SHIRLEY  CRAWFORD. 

Consul,  Louisville,  Ky. 

GUSTAVO  NIEDERLEIN, 

Consul,  Philadelphia,  Pa. 

EDWIN  R.  HEATH, 
Consul,   218   Rialto   Bldg.,   Kansas   City,  'Kans. 

BENJAMIN  PRESTON  CLARK, 
Consul,  92  Water  St.,  Boston,  Mass. 

VICENTE  J.  VIDAL, 
Vice-Consul,  Pensacola,  Fla. 

MANUEL  MARIA  SAMA, 
Consul,  Mayaguez,  P.  R. 

M.  MERROW, 

Consul,  Galveston,  Texas. 

ANDRES  J.  BALLIET, 

Consul,  Seattle,  Wash. 

ORMOND  W.  FOLLIN, 

Consul,  San  Diego,  Cal. 


UNITED  STATES  MINISTER  AND  CONSULS  IN 
GUATEMALA. 


LESLIE  COMBS, 
Envoy    Extraordinary    and    Minister    Plenipotentiary, 

Guatemala  City. 

ALFRED  A.  WINSLOW, 
Consul  General,  Guatemala  City. 

WILLIAM  OWEN, 
V.  &  D.   Consul  General,   Guatemala  City. 

CARL  G.  HEITMAN, 
Consular  Agent,  Champerico. 

EDWARD  REED, 
Consular  Agent,  Livingston. 

SAMUEL  WOLFORD, 
Consular  Agent,  Ocos. 

FRANK  SIMS  SWAN, 
Consular  Agent,  San  Jose  de  Guatemala. 


OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY 


CHAPTER  1. 
A  BRIEF  DESCRIPTION. 

The  Republic  of  Guatemala,  which  name  is  derived  from 
the  Indian  word  "  Quanhitemallan,"  signifying  "land 
covered  with  trees,"  has  been  described  as  the  privileged 
zone  of  Central  America.  This  is  because  of  its  resources, 
its  climate,  and  its  accessibility.  ; 

The  country  is  easily  reached  from  all  directions  through 
its  seaports  on  both  the  Pacific  and  Atlantic  Oceans  and 
thro  ugh 'its  rapidly  growing  system  of  railways.  From 
California,  from  the  neighboring  ports  of  other  Central 
American  countries  and  from  Panama  there  is  regular  and 
reliable  steamship  service  on  the  Pacific  coast.  On  the 
Atlantic  or  Gulf  side  from  New  York,  New  Orleans,  Galves- 
ton  and  Mobile  there  is  frequent  steamship  service,  while 
there  is  also  connection  at  Colon  with  English  and  German 
lines.  The  steamers  on  the  Pacific  coast  connect  at  San 
Jose  with  the  Guatemala  Central  Railway,  which  affords 
easy  means  of  arriving  at  the  capital  city  and  the  great 
coffee-raising  districts*  These  are  reached  by  the  branch 
to  Mazatenango,  which  forms  a  junction  with  the  Occidental 
Railway  between  Champerico  and  San  Felipe.  On  the 
Atlantic  side  is  Puerto  Barrios,  which  will  derive  additional 
importance  from  the  early  completion  of  the  Northern 
Ra.lway  and  which  will  place  New  Orleans  within  five 
days  or  less  of  Guatemala  City,  Chicago  six  days,  and  New 
York  seven  days.  Besides  the  means  of  communication 
afforded  jointly  by  the  steamship  lines  and  the  railroads 
at  an  early  date  there  will  be  complete  and  uninterrupted 
railway  communication  with  St.  Louis  and  other  points  of 
the  Mississippi  Valley  through  Mexico.  The  means  of 
communication  and  transportation  are  given  more  fully 
later  on. 

>  Geographically  the  Republic  of  Guatemala  is  the  heart 
of  intertropical  America.  It  is  the  most  northern  part  of 
Central  America,  in  shape  like  a  polygon,  with  the  southern 


10 

side  the  longest.  It  lies  approximately  between  north  latitude 
13°  and  42'  and  17°  and  49',  and  between  88°  and  10' 
and  92°  and  30'  longitude  west  of  Greenwich.  Its  area  is 
50,600  square  miles — the  greatest  length  from  north  to 
south  being  360  and  from  east  to  west  390  miles.  The 
Pacific  coast  line  with  indentations  is  nearly  400  miles  and 
the  Atlantic  line  about  150  miles  in  length.  - 

STRIKING  PHYSICAL  ASPECTS. 

'  In  its  physical  aspects  Guatemala  is  a  country  of  moun- 
tains, tropical  forests,  lakes  and  rivers  and  coast  plains. 
It  was  described  by  Humboldt  more  than  one  hundred 
years  ago  as  extremely  fertile  and  well  cultivated,  and  this 
description  holds  good  to -day,  though  there  are  vast  areas 
of  rich  agricultural  land  yet  open  to  profitable  cultivation 
and  only  awaiting  immigration  to  develop  their  richness. 

The  Guatemalan  Andes  consist  of  three  minor  mountain 
systems.  These  are  the  northern  zone,  chiefly  of  denuded 
cones,  i, 500 to  2,000  feet  in  height,  with  plains  lying  between 
them;  the  central  zone  consisting  of  ranges  and  chains 
running  east  and  west  with  many  marked  elevations  rising 
from  7,000  to  14,000  feet;  and  the  southern  zone  consisting 
of  eruptive  chains  which  culminate  in  many  notable  vol- 
canic peaks,  some  of  which  are  more  than  14,000  feet  in 
height.  These  are  known  as  the  Cordilleras  and  they 
parallel  the  Pacific  Ocean. 

There  are  three  river  systems  emptying  respectively  into 
the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  the  Atlantic  and  the  Pacific.  Some  of 
the  streams  flowing  into  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  are  navigable 
by  steamboats  of  light  draught. 

Of  the  Atlantic  tributaries  the  principal  rivers  are  the 
Sarstoon,  the  Motagua  and  the  Dulcejthe  latter  empties 
into  the  Gulf  of  Honduras.  Navigation  is  possible  on  the 
Motagua  for  about  75  miles  from  the  mouth.  The  rivers 
flowing  into  the  Pacific  include  the  Paz,  the  Suchiate,  and 
the  Patulul.  These  have  their  sources  in  the  Andean 
Cordilleras  or  the  neighboring  highlands.  There  is  also  the 
Michatoya  which  is  navigable  for  small  boats  to  its  con- 


II 

fluence  with  the  Maria  Linda.  Generally  speaking,  a  few 
of  the  rivers  on  the  southern  coast  might  be  made  navigable 
for  short  distances  with  boats  of  very  light  draught. 

Guatemala  has  a  series  of  inland  lakes  which  include 
Izabal,  Atitlan,  Amatitlan,  which  are  capable  of  steam 
navigation;  Peten,  Ayarza  and  Guija.  The  largest  of  these 
is  Lake  Izabal,  which  is  58  miles  long  by  12  miles  in  width 
and  which  has  its  outlet  through  the  Dulce  River  into  the 
Gulf  of  Honduras. 

The  cities  and  municipal  districts  having  a  population 
of  10,000  and  upwards  are  as  follows: 

NAME.  POPULATION. 

Guatemala  City    100,000 

Antigua 10,000 

Quezaltenango 25,000 

Totonicapan 33,ooo 

Coban 23,000 

Chiquimula 13,000 

Jalapa 13,000 

Escuintla    13,000 

Salama 13,000 

Amatitlan 10,000 

Zacapa 12,000 

Flores 13,000 

Jutiapa 14,000 

Huehuetenango 10,000 

Retalhuleu 10,000 

Solola   15,000 

Mazatenango 10,000 

San  Marcos 10,000 

Atitlan 10,000 

THE  HANDSOME  CAPITAL  CITY. 

Guatemala,  the  captial,  is  the  largest  city  in  Central 
America.  The  location  is  unusually  healthy,  being  5,000 
feet  above  sea  level.  The  city  is  laid  out  on  a  splendid 
scale  with  many  fine  avenues  and  parks.  It  is  improving 
its  system  of  tramways  by  changing  to  electricity  as  the 


12 

motor  power.  The  public  buildings  are  especially  notable. 
Among  the  principal  ones  are  the  Palaces  of  the  Govern- 
ment, the  Presidency,  the  Legislative  Power,  the  Judicial 
Power,  the  Municipality,  and  the  Archbishopric;  the 
Cathedral  and  other  magnificent  churches;  the  Ministry  of 
Public  Improvement  (Fomento),  the  Mint,  the  Conservatory 
of  Music,  the  general  offices  of  accounts,  of  police,  and  of 
liquors  and  internal  revenue ;  the  custom-house,  the  national 
institutes  of  young  men,  of  young  ladies  and  of  the  native 
race,  the  first  of  which  is  provided  with  a  meteorological 
observatory;  the  schools  of  law,  medicine,  engineering, 
polytechny,  and  arts;  the  children's  college  and  a  large 
number  of  public  schools;  the  Colon  theatre;  the  registry 
of  real  estate,  the  national  printing-office,  the  post-office, 
the  National  Museum;  the  military  hospital,  and  the 
general  hospitals,  the  asylums  for  the  insane  and  for  con- 
valescents and  invalids;  the  central  and  the  Calvary 
markets;  the  penitentiary  and  the  artillery,  cavalry,  and 
Guard  of  Honor  and  San  Francisco  barracks ;  San  Jose  and 
Matamoros  forts,  and  a  very  large  number  of  other  imposing 
edifices.  The  American  Club,  which  has  several  hundred 
members,  mostly  citizens  of  the  United  States,  occupies 
fine  quarters.  - 

Some  of  the  parks,  plazas,  and  public  drives  are  adorned 
with  very  beautiful  marble  or  bronze  statues.  Among  the 
principal  ones  are  the  bronze  monument  of  Christopher 
Columbus  in  the  central  park  and  the  marble  one  of  the 
same  historic  personage  in  the  garden  of  the  Colon  Theatre ; 
that  of  General  J.  Rufino  Barrios  and  that  of  Don  Miguel 
Garcia  Granados  in  the  boulevard  of  the  Reforma;  and 
that  of  Friar  Bartolomew  de  Las  Casas  in  the  campus  of 
the  Institute  of  the  Indian  race.  The  last  three  statues 
are  of  bronze.  - 

The  seaports  of  Guatemala  are  of  a  varied  character. 
Their  value  grows  every  day  because  of  the  increased  com- 
merce that  is  resulting  from  the  development  of  the  country 
under  the  industrial  policies  of  President  Estrada  Cabrera. 
On  the  Atlantic  the  leading  ports  are  Livingston,  Izabal, 


13 

Santo  Tomas,  and  Puerto  Barrios.  Of  these  Puerto  Barrios 
is  easily  first.  It  lies  at  the  extremity  of  the  Gulf  of  Ama- 
tique,  is  spacious  and  is  well  protected  against  winds.  As 
the  terminus  of  the  Guatemalan  Northern  Railway  it  is 
assured  of  a  very  extensive  trade  both  in  exports  and  in 
imports.  Puerto  Barrios  is  not  only  a  receiving  and  dis- 
tributing center  for  Guatemala,  but  also  for  a  considerable 
portion  of  the  neighboring  Republic  of  Salvador,  which  has 
no  port  on  the  Atlantic. 

The  chief  ports  on  the  Pacific  side  are  San  Jose,  Champe- 
rico,  and  Ocos.  By  far  the  largest  amount  of  business  is 
done  through  the  port  of  San  Jose,  which  is  the  terminus 
of  the  Guatemalan  Central  Railroad.  It  has  extensive 
quays  and  other  facilities  for  navigation. 

OCEAN  TRANSPORTATION  FACILITIES. 

Guatemala  is  well  supplied  with  ocean  transportation 
facilities,  several  of  the  steamship  companies  receiving  aid 
from  the  government.  On  the  Pacific  coast  there  is  the 
Pacific  Mail  which  maintains  a  regular  fortnightly  service 
with  extra  vessels  during  the  coffee  season  and  which 
touches  at  the  ports  between  San  Francisco  and  Panama. 
The  German  line  known  as  the  Kosmos  puts  the  Guate- 
malan ports  in  communication  with  the  West  Coast  of 
South  America  as  well  as  with  the  ports  of  California  and 
Mexico.  It  carries  both  passengers  and  freight.  There  are 
also  numerous  small  coasting  vessels.  It  is  probable  that 
service  will  be  resumed  by  the  various  Chilean  lines  which 
formerly  proceeded  to  San  Francisco,  touching  at  Guate- 
malan and  other  ports,  but  which  of  recent  years  have  not 
gone  north  of  Panama.  All  the  vessels  have  excellent 
passenger  accommodations. 

From  the  Atlantic  ports  there  are  ships  engaged  in  the 
fruit  trade  with  New  York  and  Boston,  some  of  which  carry 
passengers.  Usually,  however,  passengers  prefer  to  travel 
by  way  of  New  Orleans  or  Mobile,  from  either  of  which 
cities  every  Thursday  there  is  a  vessel  plying  directly  to 
Puerto  Barrios.  The  most  complete  service  is  that  main- 
tained by  the  United  Fruit  Company. 


In  view  of  the  growing  development  on  the  Atlantic 
slope  and  of  the  commerce  which  is  certain  to  result  there 
is  an  excellent  opportunity  for  an  increased  steamship 
service  with  the  ports  of  the  United  States.  The  time 
could  be  greatly  lessened  with  advantages  both  in  the 
transportation  of  freight  and  in  the  benefit  to  passengers. 
The  policy  of  the  government  towards  steamship  lines  both 
as  relates  to  port  charges  and  to  other  measures  is  a  most 
liberal  one  and  every  inducement  is  offered  to  engage  in 
furnishing  additional  facilities,  which  will  shorten  the  time 
between  the  different  points  and  increase  the  frequency  of 
communication. 

GROWTH  OF  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 

The  railway  system  of  Guatemala  under  the  administra- 
tion of  President  Estrada  Cabrera  is  certain  to  be  the  most 
useful  means  of  developing  the  country.  Every  encourage- 
ment is  given  to  capital  to  engage  in  railroad  enterprises. 
The  general  plan  includes  both  an  interoceanic  railroad  and 
links  in  the  intercontinental  or  north  and  south  lines.  No 
measure  of  President  Estrada  Cabrera's  administration  has 
been  of  greater  importance  than  his  action  in  securing  the 
completion  of  the  Northern  Railway,  which  will  be  open 
for  traffic  throughout  its  entire  length  by  the  end  of  1906. 
This  places  the  capital  and  the  whole  interior  of  the  country 
in  direct  communication  with  Puerto  Barrios  and  insures 
a  very  heavy  decrease  in  the  cost  of  freight  both  for  the 
agricultural  exports  and  for  the  merchandise  and  other 
imports.  The  line  runs  from  Guatemala  City  to  El  Rancho 
and  thence  to  Puerto  Barrios.  At  various  times  conces- 
sions were  given  for  building  the  different  sections,  but 
circumstances  caused  many  of  them  to  be  almost  aban- 
doned. 

In  the  face  of  repeated  discouragements  President 
Estrada  Cabrera  took  up  the  subject  with  resolute  spirit 
and  with  the  sanction  of  the  National  Assembly  made  a 
contract  with  a  syndicate  of  which  the  principals  were 
Sir  William  C.  Van  Home,  the  celebrated  railroad  man, 


15 

who  completed  the  Canadian  Pacific  Railway  in  the  face 
of  monumental  difficulties  and  who  subsequently  built  the 
Cuba  Central  Railway;  and  Minor  C.  Keith,  of  the  United 
Fruit  Company,  who  for  a  third  of  a  century  had  been 
identified  with  various  successful  enterprises  in  Central 
America.  Subsequently  the  Guatemala  Central  Railway 
took  a  share  in  the  enterprise  and  also  German  banking 
and  coffee  interests.  Under  the  contract  no  export  duty 
is  to  be  laid  on  agricultural  exports  transported  over  the 
railroad  except  coffee  and  the  Company  is  given  the  right 
to  fix  its  passenger  and  freight  charges  on  a  gold  basis. 
There  were  many  engineering  difficulties  to  be  overcome, 
the  chiefest  of  which  was  the  bridging  of  the  Motagua 
River.  The  material  for  this  railway  construction  was 
imported  principally  from  the  United  States,  the  rails 
from  Maryland  and  the  bridgework  across  the  Motagua  and 
other  rivers  from  Pittsburg. 

The  importance  of  this  Northern  Railway  to  the  develop- 
ment of  Guatemala  is  incalculable.  It  insures  the  opening 
up  of  a  very  rich  country  which  means  a  great  addition  to 
the  exports  of  Guatemala  and  it  also  should  bring  a  large 
immigration  because  of  the  facilities  for  easy  communica- 
tion and  access  to  the  markets  of  the  United  States  which 
it  will  afford.  With  the  operation  of  the  Northern  Railway 
in  connection  with  the  Guatemala  Central,  the  country  will 
have  a  through  railway  line  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific 
ocean,  270  miles  in  length.  While  the  interior  develop- 
ment is  the  chief  benefit  of  this  through  railway  system,  it 
is  not  unlikely  that  during  the  years  that  must  pass  until 
the  Panama  Canal  is  completed  some  of  the  international 
traffic  which  cannot  be  accommodated  on  the  railway  line 
across  the  Isthmus  will  find  a  cheap  and  expeditious  passage 
across  Guatemala. 

On  the  Pacific  slope  the  leading  railway  system  is  the 
Guatemala  Central.  It  was  built  by  C.  P.  Huntington  and 
is  one  of  the  best  railroads  anywhere  south  of  the  Rio 
Grande.  Though  of  narrow  gauge  the  roadbed  was  laid 
for  standard  gauge,  and  this  change  can  be  made  at  any 


i6 

time.  Unlike  most  foreign  railways  the  Guatemala  Central 
maintains  the  American  system  of  checking  baggage.  Its 
main  line  and  branches  cover  the  coffee-raising  districts 
of  the  Pacific  coast  section  of  Guatemala.  The  Occidental 
Railroad  has  about  50  miles  of  track  and  the  Ocos  line 
20  miles.  Both  of  these  are  on  the  Pacific  slope. 

COMPREHENSIVE  RAILWAY  POLICY. 

It  is  worth  knowing  that  while  the  interoceanic  line 
approaches  completion  Guatemala  is  making  decided  prog- 
ress in  the  links  of  the  Pan-American  or  intercontinental 
north  and  south  trunk  line.  From  a  junction  with  the 
Northern  a  branch  will  run  south  to  Zacapa  and  ultimately 
will  be  extended  into  Salvador.  Towards  the  north  there 
is  only  a  section  of  30  miles  to  be  completed  in  order  to 
prolong  the  Guatemalan  system  to  Ayutla  on  the  border 
of  Mexico  and  this  will  be  done  as  soon  as  the  extension  of 
the  Mexican  lines  to  the  boundary  are  completed.  These 
extensions  are  to  be  finished  within  two  years,  so  it  may 
reasonably  be  said  that  by  the  end  of  1907,  if  not  sooner, 
a  through  railway  journey  will  be  possible  from  San  Fran- 
cisco, Chicago,  or  New  York  to  the  capital  of  Guatemala 
The  importance  of  this  railway  building  was  shown  by- 
Senator  Stephen  B.  Elkins,  the  chairman  of  the  Senate 
Committee  on  Interstate  Commerce,  in  a  speech  made  at 
the  dinner  given  the  Pan-American  Railway  Committee  by 
the  Hon.  H.  G.  Davis.  In  his  speech  Senator  Elkins  said 
that  the  freight  on  coffee,  which  now  approximates  $20  per  ton 
or  $1,000  on  a  carload  of  50  tons,  would  be  cheapened  till 
it  came  down  to  $250  per  carload,  or  $5  per  ton. 

The  railroad  laws  of  Guatemala  are  thus  explained  in  my 
official  report  as  Commissioner  of  the  Pan-American  Railway : 

4 '  The  railways  of  Guatemala  are  regulated  by  the  provi- 
sions of  the  Commercial  Code  and  by  the  general  railway 
law  known  as  Decree  No.  566,  dated  February  i,  1898. 
By  the  terms  of  this  decree  persons  or  companies  seeking 
franchises  are  required  to  submit  the  plans  to  the  Depart- 
ment of  Fomento;  when  indorsed  by  that  Department  the 
sanction  of  the  Council  of  State  is  sought,  and  finally  the 


e^  i*  '  •••*-v  f.     •  J  \ 

4f&*  W/:    t 


MONUMENT  TO  COLUMBUS. 


THE   . 
//      8  IKl  l\/CTDe  I  TV      \\ 


approval  of  the  National  Legislature.  All  contracts  cele- 
brated by  the  executive  power  have  to  be  approved  by  the 
National  Legislature.  The  contracts  may  be  with  desig- 
nated individuals,  with  persons  acting  for  others,  or  for 
companies  that  are  to  be  formed. 

"Concessions  can  be  granted  with  subsidy  or  without  it, 
guaranteeing  or  not  the  capital  which  may  be  invested, 
with  an  interest  proportionate  to  the  product.  The  Govern- 
ment shall  include  in  the  estimates  the  share  of  pecuniary 
responsibilities  required  for  fulfilling  the  obligation  con- 
tracted. 

"The  State  may  exempt  the  enterprise  from  the  payment 
of  every  class  of  contributions,  from  the  use  of  stamped 
paper  and  fiscal  dues,  for  the  time  which  it  may  consider 
just  or  opportune,  but  in  every  instance  the  exemptions 
shall  be  specified  in  the  contract. 

"The  right  of  eminent  domain  or  expropriation  for  the 
benefit  of-  grantees  holding  franchises  is  enforced.  The 
Government  also  undertakes  to  procure  uniformity  in  the 
guage  and  the  rails. 

' '  The  Government  offers  every  inducement  to  promote 
the  extension  and  development  of  railroads  in  the  country. 
The  best  evidence  of  its  policy  toward  legitimate  and  genuine 
capital  is  shown  in  the  terms  of  the  contract  for  the  com- 
pletion of  the  Northern  Railroad. 

"The  engineering  difficulties  of  railroad  construction  in 
Guatemala  are  not  grave,  as  the  lines  skirt  the  foothills 
of  the  great  agricultural  regions.  The  immense  natural 
resources,  consisting  of  the  products  both  of  the  tropical 
and  the  temperate  climates,  such  as  coffee,  sugar,  tobacco, 
the  cereals;  the  vast  pasturage  for  live  stock;  the  unde- 
veloped timber  industries,  and  the  unexploited  mines,  all 
open  up  prospects  for  profitable  traffic." 

In  addition  to  its  railways  Guatemala  seeks  to  maintain 
a  complete  system  of  highways  or  cart  roads.  Among  the 
most  important  cart  roads  which  have  recently  been  built 
or  are  now  under  construction,  are  those  from  the  capital 
to  San  Juan  Sacatepequez,  San  Pedro  and  San  Raymundo. 
There  is  also  a  cart  road  between  Huehuetenango  and 


iS 

Quezaltenango ;  one  from  Coban  to  Quiche  which  will  join 
the  departments  of  the  north  with  the  rich  western  section 
of  the  Republic;  from  Totonicapan  to  Quiche;  that  be- 
tween Ovejero  and  Trujillo,  which  will  place  in  communica- 
tion the  departments  of  Jutiapa  and  Jalapa;  that  from 
Tumbador  to  San  Marcos;  that  from  Solola  to  Pana- 
jachel ;  that  from  Chicacao  to  Nahualate ;  and  finally  the 
highway  from  San  Jeronimo  and  Rancho  San  Augustin, 
which  will  join  the  department  of  Baja  Verapaz  with  Zacapa. 
All  these  roads  serve  as  new  arteries  for  the  development 
and  the  enlargement  of  commerce  and  agriculture  and  this 
has  been  the  special  care  of  President  Estrada  Cabrera, 
who  has  provided  the  means  for  opening,  wherever  possible, 
the  necessary  ways  of  communication . 

Distances   between  the  capital   city  and  the   principal 
points  of  the  country  are  as  follows: 

GUATEMALA  TO  MILES. 

Antigua 27 

Chimaltenango 36 

Amatitlan 1 8 

Escuintla 43  J 

Cuajiniquilapa 42 

Solola 90 

Totonicapan in 

Quezaltenango    120 

Mazatenango 138 

Retalhuleu 153 

San  Marcos 165 

Huehuetenango 195 

Santa  Cruz  de  Quiche 96 

Salama 69 

Coban 126 

Flores 32 1 

Izabal 216 

Zacapa 126 

Chiquimula : 135 

Jalapa  .  75 

Jutiapa 87 


19 
POSTAL  AND  CABLE  SERVICE. 

The  means  of  facilitating  intercourse  both  among  its  own 
people  and  with  the  outside  world  has  always  been  encour- 
aged by  the  government  of  Guatemala. 

The  Republic  is  a  member  of  the  International  Postal 
Union.     It  has  an  excellent  post-office  service,  both  foreign 
and    domestic.     Complete    information    is    given    in    the 
Postal  Code  of  the  Republic.     During  the  last  year  the 
number  of  pieces  of  mail  received  in  all  the  offices  of  the 
Republic    was    nearly    5,000,000,  while    the    mail    matter 
transmitted  amounted  to  3,653,000  separate  pieces.     The 
telegraph  and  telephone  are  nationalized  and  are  controlled 
and  operated  by  the  Government,  though  there  are  also 
some  private  telephone  lines  in  the  capital.    The  national  tele- 
graph lines  have  a  total  length  of  about  5 , 300  kilometers  ,3,290 
miles,  and  the  telephone  lines  of  500  kilometers,  310  miles. 
The  number  of  telegrams  transmitted  in  a  given  year  was 
1,106,832.     The  Government  is  constantly  constructing  new 
lines  both  for  telegraph  and  telephone  service.     At  the 
present  time  there  are  nearly  200  telegraph  offices  and  about 
100  telephone  offices.     The  rates  both  for  telegraph  and 
telephone    messages,    which    are    payable   in    Guatemalan 
currency,  are  quite  moderate.     A  telegram  of  10  words  to 
any  part  of  the  Republic  costs  about  5  cents  in  gold.     The 
long  distance  telephone  service  is  at  the  rate  of  about  15 
cents  for  a  five  minutes'  conversation. 

The  cable  service  is  maintained  by  the  Central  and  South 
American  Telegraph  Company,  whose  main  office  is  at  San 
Jose.  The  following  are  the  charges  per  word  in  gold: 

Guatemala  to  points  in  the  United  States ...  55  cts. 

"     Great  Britain    .  .  80  cts. 

"     France 80  cts. 

"     Germany 80  cts. 

"     Canada 58  cts. 

"     Central  America,  29  to  32  cts. 

Havana,  Cuba 66  cts. 

points  in  Mexico 31  to  44  cts. 

City  of  Panama 37  cts. 

City  of  Colon 47  cts. 


CHAPTER  II. 
A   PROGRESSIVE   PRESIDENT  AND  His   POLICIES. 


Guatemala  in  order  to  fulfil  its  destiny  as  the  country 
of  the  future  must  be  assured  of  stable  and  progressive 
government  hospitable  to  foreign  capital.  To  insure  these 
things  it  is  necessary  to  have  the  right  man  at  the  head  of 
affairs.  No  one  now  questions  that  Guatemala  possesses 
this  advantage  in  the  person  of  Manuel  Estrada  Cabrera, 
whose  term  as  President  will  not  expire  till  1911. 

The  best  test  of  any  public  man  entrusted  with  the 
responsibility  of  government  is  the  opinion  of  disinterested 
foreign  observers  whose  position  gives  them  the  opportunity 
to  judge.  This  opinion  was  voiced  by  Mr.  Leslie  Combs, 
the  American  Minister  Plenipotentiary  to  Guatemala,  on 
the  occasion  of  a  New  Year's  reception  by  President  Estrada 
Cabrera  (1905),  when  the  diplomatic  corps  called  on  the 
President  in  a  body.  Speaking  for  himself  and  for  his 
colleagues  of  the  Diplomatic  Corps  Minister  Combs  on  that 
occasion  said: 

"Upon  such  an  occasion  as  this  criticism  or  compliment 
would  alike  be  out  of  place,  but  it  may  be  permitted  to 
mention  the  wonderful  development  in  Mexico  in  the  past 
ten  years,  the  great  work  no  win  hand  to  the  south  and  to 
predict  that  Guatemala  in  material  wealth  and  well-being 
has  a  great  future  before  her.  We  hope  this  will  be  realized 
in  your  next  administration  and  that  this  year  will  dis- 
tinctly mark  its  advent. 

"The  wise  base  their  hopes  of  the  future  upon  their 
experiences  of  the  past  and  we  look  to  the  peace  and  order 
maintained  by  your  administration  in  the  past  seven  years 
as  a  guarantee  that  your  people  may  expect  as  much  in 
those  that  are  to  follow. 


21 

"We  remember  that  called  to  your  position  of  responsi- 
bility by  a  tragedy  you  have  firmly  held  the  authority 
with  which  you  have  been  entrusted.  We  remember  that 
by  the  diplomatic  settlement  of  1902,  by  arbitration  and 
negotiation,  you  have  settled  all  the  foreign  claims  of 
importance  against  your  government  and  have  given  rise 
to  not  one  yourself.  We  remember  that  hardly  had  the 
ashes  cooled  after  the  terrible  disaster  of  Santa  Maria  when 
railway  spikes  were  being  driven  to  its  base  and  the  Mazate- 
nango  Rail  way  opened,  that  the  Northern  Railway  contract 
seems  to  guarantee  the  completion  of  that  highway  to  the 
Atlantic  at  an  early  date. 

"These  achievements  in  a  period  of  depression,  in  the 
face  of  natural  phenomena  of  almost  unparalleled  destruc- 
tiveness,  warrant  the  hope  that  conditions  may  enable  you 
to  direct  the  destiny  of  Guatemala  still  further  along  on 
the  highway  to  that  position  all  hope  she  may  one  day 
occupy.  A  noble  field  lies  before  you.  That  you  may  be 
able  to  occupy  it  to  the  greatest  advantage  of  your  country 
is -our  earnest  wish." 

The  tribute  from  Minister  Combs,  as  will  be  noticed, 
especially  emphasizes  President  Estrada  Cabrera's  qualities 
as  a  man  of  achievement.  That  is  the  keynote  of  his 
character,  to  do  something  for  his  country. 

President  Estrada  Cabrera  is  a  civilian  executive.  His 
public  life  has  been  that  of  a  lawyer  eminent  in  his  profes- 
sion. 

SUPPORT  OF  LIBERAL  PRINCIPLES. 

In  his  participation  in  public  affairs  President  Estrada 
Cabrera  always  has  supported  liberal  principles.  It  was 
therefore  natural  that  he  should  be  prominent  in  the 
councils  of  the  Liberal  party  and  should  become  the  leader 
of  that  organization.  His  career  has  been  one  to  familiarize 
him  with  all  the  departments  of  the  government.  He 
served  as  Secretary  of  Government  and  Justice,  and  it  was 
while  holding  this  position  that  in  order  to  investigate  a 


22 

land  controversy  he  went  out  into  the  wilderness  himself 
and  spent  several  weeks  going  over  the  sections  concerning 
which  he  desired  to  be  fully  informed.  The  result  was 
that  this  controversy  which  had  been  in  dispute  for  a  long 
term  of  years  was  finally  settled  in  the  manner  most  equita- 
ble and  just  for  the  parties  interested.  This  is  the  way 
President  Estrada  Cabrera  works  when  the  interests  of  the 
State  are  involved. 

In  1898  when  President-General  Jose  Maria  Reyna 
Barrios  was  killed  Mr.  Estrada  Cabrera  was  Primer  Desig- 
nado,  the  position  which  corresponds  to  vice-president  in 
the  United  States  and  under  which  he  became  acting  Presi- 
dent until  an  election  could  be  held.  At  that  election  he 
was  chosen  President  by  a  substantially  unanimous  vote. 
An  indication  of  his  public  policies  was  given  by  him  when 
he  outlined  his  programme  on  coming  into  the  responsibility 
for  the  government  of  Guatemala  during  the  interim  which 
he  served  in  the  character  of  Primer  Designado.  On  that 
occasion  he  said : 

"My  administration  will  be  brief  and  of  a  temporary 
character,  but  not  for  that  reason  shall  it  be  left  for  History 
to  demand  of  me  a  strict  account  of  my  acts  during  this 
period.  I  declare  in  the  most  solemn  manner  before  my 
fellow  citizens  that  I  wish  to  hand  back  the  beautiful 
standard  of  my  country  without  stain.  I  desire  that  the 
Constitution,  the  sacred  repository  of  our  liberties,  be  not 
soiled  in  my  hands.  My  hope  is  that  all  of  my  compatriots- 
may  enjoy  the  life  and  public  liberties  that  are  rightfully 
theirs.  I  wish  that  all  the  guaranties  may  protect  them 
in  the  moment  when  they  approach  the  ballot  boxes  to  cast 
their  vote  for  the  person  to  whom  it  will  be  given  to  direct 
the  destinies  of  our  common  country." 

It  was  after  this  declaration  and  after  several  months' 
experience  under  President  Estrada  Cabrera's  administration 
that  in  September,  1898,  the  people  chose  him  to  fill 
out  the  full  presidential  term  and  then  in  1904  re-elected 
him  for  the  term  which  will  expire  in  1911. 


When  President  Estrada  Cabrera  became  charged  with 
the  full  responsibility  of  power  in  1898,  Guatemala  was  in 
the  midst  of  political  complications  and  of  a  very  severe 
industrial  crisis.  His  first  labor  was  to  insure  political 
tranquillity.  When  this  was  accomplished  he  gave  all  his 
energies  and  his  talents  to  developing  the  resources  of  the 
country  and  to  the  improvement  of  public  administration. 
From  this  point  a  recent  writer,  confirming  the  eulogy  of 
Minister  Combs,  said: 

"Guatemala  now  enjoys  unalterable  peace.  Her  prog- 
ress is '  most  notable  and  instead  of  investing  the  public 
funds  exclusively  in  swords  and  cannons  there  have  been 
instituted  the  annual  festival  of  Minerva,  the  most  splendid 
work  of  Estrada  Cabrera  as  ruler  and  as  patriot,  arousing 
in  this  manner  in  the  people  the  desire  for  instruction  and 
fostering  by  all  possible  means  the  material  progress  of  the 
country;  giving  facilities  and  opening  new  ways  to  traffic 
and  commerce;  nourishing  industries,  science  and  the  arts; 
beautifying  the  cities  and  villages;  affording  to  all  the 
advantages  of  modern  improvements  and  spreading  the 
knowledge  of  hygiene  among  the  masses." 

A  RECORD  OF  ACHIEVEMENT. 

In  a  general  way  the  administration  of  President  Estrada 
Cabrera  has  been  described  as  the  political  emancipation 
and  the  administrative  emancipation.  The  former  topic 
will  be  considered  in  the  explanation  of  Guatemala's  inter- 
national relations.  The  administrative  reforms  which 
President  Estrada  Cabrera  has  introduced  are  numerous. 
He  has  reduced  in  a  large  measure  the  public  debt  and  has 
paid  almost  entirely  the  recognized  foreign  claims  incurred 
by  previous  administrations,  has  given  marked  impulse  to 
the  construction  of  highways,  bridges,  and  other  public 
works;  has  systematically  fostered  agriculture;  has  re- 
formed and  liberalized  the  Civil  Codes  and  Proceedings; 
has  extended  the  system  of  posts,  telegraphs,  and  tele- 
phones; has  established  patriotic  celebrations  of  an  indus- 


24 

trial,  agricultural,  literary  and  scientific  character;  has 
reorganized  the  army  and  the  branch  of  military  hygiene, 
has  enacted  rigorous  measures  of  quarantine  against  yellow 
fever,  smallpox,  and  the  bubonic  pests;  has  enlarged  con- 
siderably the  public  schools  and  the  charitable  institu- 
tions by  constructing  the  fine  Asylum  for  Invalids  and 
Convalescents  which  bears  his  name;  has  improved  the 
fiscal  systems  of  the  municipalities  by  bringing  them  to  a 
modern  basis,  and  has  secured  special  advantages  in 
supplying  them  with  light,  water,  and  other  municipal 
necessities. 

Generally  it  further  may  be  said  that  Guatemala  owes 
to  President  Estrada  Cabrera: 

The  rehabilitation  of  her  railway  system. 

The  stability  of  the  legal  regimen. 

Important  reforms  in  land  holdings  in  the  interest  of 
the  small  land  owners. 

The  institution  of  closer  relations  with  all  the  nations  of 
the  world  and  especially  with  the  United  States. 

The  restoration  of  public  credit. 

A  satisfactory  immigration  policy. 

The  re-establishment  and  reorganization  of  the  public 
school  system,  and  a  great  variety  of  other  measures  which 
form  a  solid  foundation  for  the  continued  development  of 
the  country. 

POPULAR  EDUCATION  PROMOTED. 

People  in  the  United  States  who  believe  in  the  "Little 
Red  School  House"  as  the  basis  of  good  citizenship  cannot 
fail  to  appreciate  how  thoroughly  President  Estrada  Cabrera 
has  made  primary  education  a  part  of  his  policy.  In  the 
midst  of  his  many  measures  for  the  material  development 
of  the  country  he  never  has  lost  sight  of  the  moral  advance- 
ment which  comes  from  the  school.  He  believes  in  educa- 
tion also  as  the  very  best  means  of  creating  and  fostering 
the  national  patriotic  spirit.  During  his  first  term  he 
published  a  decree  relating  especially  to  the  education  of 
the  youth  of  the  country.  He  fixed  the  last  Sunday  of 


PRESIDENT  AND  MEMBERS  OF  CABINET. 


OF      M 


|  UNIVERSITY  j) 


October  of  each  year  for  the  celebration  of  a  popular  festival 
throughout  the  Republic  consecrated  exclusively  to  com- 
memorate the  education  of  the  youth  of  the  country  and 
requiring  that  all  the  directors,  professors,  teachers,  and 
scholars  of  all  the  schools  take  part  in  it.  This  was  known 
as  the  Festival  of  Minerva.  It  is  a  sentimental  recognition 
of  the  value  of  education,  and  is  the  complement  of  the 
practical  steps  which  have  been  taken.  One  of  his  first 
measures  on  coming  into  the  presidency  in  1898  was  to 
decree  the  reopening  of  the  public  schools.  From  that 
time  he  exerted  himself  constantly  to  elevate  their  standing 
by  providing  them  with  the  best  facilities,  by  reorganizing 
them  in  conformity  with  the  most  modern  plans,  and  in 
a  word  by  encouraging  their  extension  and  their  progress 
in  every  sense. 

Besides  the  primary  schools  a  system  of  higher  education 
is  supported,  and  there  are  normal  schools  and  various 
faculties  such  as  those  of  law,  medicine,  engineering,  etc. 
Especial  attention,  however,  has  been  given  to  practical 
education,  that  is,  the  fitting  of  the  common  people  for 
their  occupations.  There  are  schools  of  commerce,  of 
manual  training,  and  of  agriculture,  as  well  as  an  Institute 
especially  for  the  native  Indians.  On  this  subject  of 
technical  education  Consul  General  of  the  United  States 
Winslow  in  a  special  report  said: 

"There  are  few  villages  in  the  country  where  there  are 
no  schools.  In  the  city  of  Guatemala  of  late  much  atten- 
tion has  been  given  to  education,  under  the  direction  of 
President  Manuel  Estrada  Cabrera,  who  has  done  more 
along  this  line  than  any  of  his  predecessors.  There  are  in 
the  city  of  Guatemala  25  public  schools,  8  institutes,  and 
3  colleges. 

"President  Estrada  Cabrera  has  given  much  attention 
to  his  pet  scheme  of  establishing  an  industrial  school  for 
boys  and  girls  at  his  own  personal  expense,  aided  by  several 
of  the  more  progressive  citizens  of  Guatemala  city,  where 
the  most  improved  methods  of  instruction  are  to  be  em- 
ployed. The  President  has  engaged  two  able  educators 


26 

from  the  United  States,  and  proposes  everything  shall  be 
up-to-date. 

"The  Boys'  Industrial  College  is  in  charge  of  Prof.  Y.  C. 
Pilgrim,  a  well-known  educator  of  New  Jersey,  assisted  by 
Professor  Bellingham  and  wife,  who  have  charge  of  the 
languages,  and  Professor  Lorenzo  de  Clairmont,  who 
instructs  in  gymnastics  and  military  tactics.  These  are 
assisted  by  several  native  teachers.  The  boys  are  selected 
from  the  best  families  in  the  Republic  and  are  limited  to 
50,  and  are  all  required  to  live  in  the  dormitory.  The 
college  buildings  are  situated  in  a  tract  of  land  of  about 
60  acres,  convenient  to  the  city,  with  a  campus  where  the 
boys  are  to  be  instructed  in  the  modern  sports  and  military 
tactics  as  taught  at  West  Point,  and  all  orders  are  to  be 
given  in  the  English  language. 

"The  Girls'  Industrial  School  is  in  charge  of  Miss  Alice 
Dufour,  a  prominent  educator  of  New  York  City,  assisted 
by  several  native  instructors.  This  institution  is  located 
in  the  city  and  is  to  be  conducted  on  the  same  high  plan 
as  the  boys'  college.  The  idea  is  to  teach  the  principles 
on  which  the  American  home  is  founded. 

"President  Estrada  Cabrera  means  these  institutions 
shall  be  the  nucleus  around  which  a  solid  and  up-to-date 
system  of  education  shall  be  built  for  this  Republic.  It 
is  his  ambition  to  firmly  establish  an  educational  system 
modeled  after  that  in  use  in  the  United  States,  where  the 
watchword  shall  be  industry,  promptness,  and  honesty." 

The  New  York  Tribune  in  a  Washington  dispatch  had 
this  to  say  on  the  same  subject: 

"American  teachers  who  went  to  Guatemala  some  time 
ago  at  the  request  of  the  government  are  sending  back 
interesting  accounts  of  the  progress  which  that  country  is 
making  in  adopting  the  educational  methods  that  obtain 
in  the  United  States.  The  newspapers  also  have  a  good 
deal  to  say  on  the  subject.  President  Estrada  Cabrera, 
who  is  a  progressive  man,  for  several  years  has  had  the 
ambition  to  give  a  new  turn  to  public  instruction,  and  to 
make  it  practical  after  the  system  of  the  United  States. 


27 

His  idea  is  that  the  youth  of  the  Latin- American  countries 
are  especially  in  need  of  newer  methods,  and  of  getting" 
away  from  the  metaphysical  systems  which  created  a 
large  class  of  professional  men,  for  whom  there  was  no 
room  and  who  were  a  drawback  to  material  progress. 

"Some  time  ago  President  Estrada  Cabrera  established 
what  was  called  the  practical  school,  which  combined  tech- 
nical instruction  and  manual  training.  A  few  weeks  ago 
exercises  were  held  at  the  Escuela  Practica,  or  technical 
school,  and  it  is  concerning  this  that  the  New  York  teachers 
have  written  so  encouragingly.  The  President  delivered 
an  address  on  the  value  of  work  and  of  developing  through 
the  schools  an  aptitude  for  everyday  life.  Heretofore  he 
said  there  had  been  too  much  theory  and  too  much  that 
was  purely  professional  in  the  system  followed.  Now  that 
the  aspiration  of  many  years  had  been  realized  he  was 
hopeful  that  the  experiment  would  be  beneficial  in  giving 
a  new  direction  to  the  national  spirit,  and  would  result  in 
the  kind  of  business  training  that  would  fit  the  Guatemalan 
youth  for  the  activities  of  practical  life  rather  than  incline 
them  to  the  traditions  of  the  past.  Under  the  direction 
of  the  President  fields  for  farm  experiments  have  been 
established,  and  the  youth  are  taught  the  care  of  horses 
and  other  farm  work,  as  well  as  the  manual  trades.  There 
is  special  provision  made  for  athletic  sports." 

SYSTEM  OF  GOVERNMENT  EXPLAINED. 

The  Government  of  Guatemala  is  republican — demo- 
cratic and  representative — and  the  supreme  power  is 
exercised  by  three  governmental  branches,  each  independ- 
ent of  the  others,  called  "the  legislative  power,"  "the 
executive  power,"  and  "the  judicial  power." 

The  legislative  power  is  vested  in  a  National  Assembly 
which  consists  of  a  single  house  composed  of  one  deputy 
for  each  20,000  inhabitants  or  fraction  of  that  number 
exceeding  10,000.  The  deputies  are  elected  by  popular 
vote  for  four  years,  but  one-half  of  the  Assembly  is  renewed 
eaoh  two  years  so  that  each  time  that  it  meets  it  contains: 


28 

an  adequate  '  number  of  experienced  members.  Annual 
sessions  are  held  lasting  two  months,  beginning  March  i, 
but  they  can  be  extended  one  month  longer  in  case  of 
necessity.  For  the  transaction  of  business  during  its 
recesses  the  Assembly  appoints  seven  of  its  members  who 
form  a  body  called  "the  Permanent  Commission."  This 
commission,  as  well  as  the  executive,  can  call  the  Assembly 
to  meet  in  extraordinary  sessions. 

The  executive  power  is  exercised  by  the  President  of  the 
Republic,  who,  for  the  transaction  of  public  business, 
appoints  six  Ministers  or  Secretaries  of  State,  who  have 
charge  of  the  portfolios  of  Foreign  Relations,  Government 
and  Justice,  the  Treasury  and  Public  Credit,  War,  Public 
Works,  and  Public  Instruction. 

There  is  also  a  Council  of  State,  a  purely  advisory  body, 
which  is  composed  of  the  Cabinet  Ministers  and  nine  other 
members,  of  whom  five  are  appointed  by  the  Assembly 
and  four  by  the  President.  These  appointments  are  for 
two  years. 

The  judicial  power  is  exercised  by  the  courts  and  judges 
of  the  Republic,  organized  as  follows: 

The  Supreme  Court  of  Justice,  which  sits  at  the  capital 
of  Guatemala  and  is  composed  of  the  President  of  the 
Judicial  Power,  four  Magistrates,  and  an  Attorney  (Fiscal). 

Six  Courts  or  Tribunals  of  Appeals,  composed  of  three 
Magistrates,  of  whom  one  presides,  and  an  Attorney  (Fiscal). 
Three  of  these  Courts  sit  at  the  Capital  and  one  in  each  of 
the  capitals  of  the  Departments  of  Quezaltenango,  Alta 
Verapaz,  and  Jalapa.  The  Magistrates  and  Attorneys  are 
elected  by  popular  vote. 

The  Judges  of  the  Courts  of  First  Instance,  of  whom 
there  are  six  in  the  Capital,  three  in  Quezaltenango,  two 
in  San  Marcos,  and  one  in  each  of  the  remaining  Depart- 
ments of  the  Republic.  These  Judges  are  appointed  by 
the  Executive  from  three  names  proposed  by  the  Supreme 
Court  of  Justice. 

Finally,  the  Justices  of  the  Peace  who  pronounce  oral 
judgments  and  are  elected  by  the  people  of  the  districts 
in  which  thev  exercise  their  functions. 


29 

For  the  exercise  of  the  political,  civil,  and  military 
administration  of  the  country  it  is  divided  into  twenty-two 
Departments,  each  of  which  has  a  Governor  (Jefe  Politico) 
invested  with  the  executive  functions.  For  the  adminis- 
tration of  the  local  affairs  of  each  district  there  are  popularly 
elected  Municipal  Councils.  The  service  of  the  members 
of  the  Councils  is  for  one  year,  is  obligatory  for  the  citizens 
of  the  respective  districts,  and  is  not  remunerated. 

The  Constitution  of  the  Republic  gives  to  all  those  who 
live  in  the  country  the  most  ample  guaranties  of  liberty, 
equality,  and  security  of  their  persons,  their  honor,  and 
their  property;  of  freedom  of  movement  and  of  assembly, 
of  professions,  of  industries,  and  of  commerce;  of  the  right 
to  dispose  of  their  property,  to  address  petitions  to  the 
authorities  and  to  defend  their  interests  before  them;  of 
liberty  of  conscience,  inasmuch  as  there  is  no  official  relig- 
ion; of  the  right  to  freely  express  their  opinions,  whether 
by  speech,  or  by  writing,  or  by  means  of  the  press,  without 
being  subject  to  censure;  of  liberty  to  give  or  receive 
instruction,  if  they  should  so  prefer,  in  private  educational 
establishments;  of  the  right  to  have  their  residences,  their 
property,  their  correspondence,  and  other  papers  respected 
as  inviolable;  of  the  right  of  habeas  corpus;  of  liberty  of 
defence  in  judicial  proceedings,  etc. 

Primary  instruction  is  obligatory,  and  that  which  is 
sustained  by  the  nation  is  secular  and  free.  There  is  no 
imprisonment  for  debt.  Marriage  is  considered  a  simple 
civil  contract;  but  those  who  desire  can  have  it  solemnized 
in  a  religious  form.  Absolute  divorce  can  be  obtained  in 
cases  defined  by  the  law. 


CHAPTER  III. 
THE  Soil,  AND  ITS  RICHES. 


The  soil  of  Guatemala  is  remarkable  in  the  vast  extent 
and  great  variety  of  two  classes  of  products  which  are 
unusual  within  the  same  degrees  of  latitude,  that  is,  it 
produces  both  tropical  and  temperate  staples  of  agriculture 
in  great  profusion.  The  soil  grows  coffee,  sugar-cane, 
cacao,  bananas,  tobacco,  cotton,  india  rubber,  vanilla, 
sarsaparilla,  and  a  long  list  of  medicinal  plants,  while  it 
likewise  produces  the  cereals,  wheat  and  Indian  corn,  which 
are  only  found  in  temperate  regions,  giving  two  and  in 
some  places  three  crops  of  these  annually.  There  are  also 
endless  kinds  of  valuable  hardwood,  mahogany,  rosewood, 
ebony,  cedar  and  the  like,  which  are  especially  tropical 
timber,  and  at  the  same  time  pine  and  oak  exist  in  the 
mountain  regions  of  the  interior.  Besides  all  this  the 
grasses  grown  are  especially  adapted  to  live  stock,  and 
cattle  raising  and  dairying  are  very  profitable  industries. 

The  British  Consul  General  in  an  official  report  to  the 
Foreign  Office  in  London  had  this  to  say  about  the  capa- 
bilities of  the  soil: 

"The  tropical  situation  of  the  country,  the  proximity  of 
every  portion  to  the  sea  on  both  coasts,  the  diversity  of 
altitude  and  consequently  of  temperature,  combine  to  make 
the  agricultural  capabilities  of  Guatemala  equal  to  any 
in  the  world.  Every  kind  of  crop,  from  those  of  the  tropical 
coast  regions  to  those  of  the  cold  highlands  (the  latter 
having  a  climate  corresponding  with  that  of  northern 
Europe  in  summer)  may  be  raised.  There  are  districts 
where  even  four  crops  of  maize  (Indian  corn)  are  obtained 
in  one  year.  It  is  a  common  theory  that  the  manures  are 
unnecessary,  as  the  heavy  rains  wash  down  the  rich  soils 
from  the  sides  of  the  mountains  and  fertilize  the  plains. 


The  great  secret  is  therefore  for  the  agriculturist  to  adapt 
his  cultivation  to  the  nature  of  the  soil  and  climate  and  his 
interest  would  be  advanced  by  a  judicious  rotation  of 
crops." 

A  breezy  description,  though  an  accurate  one,  was  given 
of  the  soil  of  Guatemala  by  a  correspondent  of  the  Washing- 
ton Star.  Wrote  this  correspondent: 

' '  Instead  of  my  own  impressions  of  the  country  I  would 
rather  give  those  of  a  North  Carolina  business  man.  He 
was  taking  the  rest  cure  by  means  of  a  sea  voyage  to  San 
Francisco  and  deflected  his  itinerary  for  a  week's  land 
journey.  We  traveled  together  to  the  capital  and  also 
made  a  trip  to  the  port  of  Champerico  over  the  railroad 
extension  which  has  opened  up  new  and  untouched  terri- 
tory. It  was  his  first  view  of  tropical  lands  except  from 
the  ship's  deck. 

"On  landing  at  San  Jose  the  North  Carolina  man  looked 
with  awe  and  admiration  as  every  tourist  is  bound  to  do 
on  the  dominating  volcano  peaks  Fuego  and  Agua,  Fire 
and  Water.  But  while  he  never  ceased  to  wonder  at  the 
richness  of  the  scenery  his  practical  instincts  asserted 
themselves  and  he  punctuated  the  information  given  him 
about  climate,  soil  and  products  with  keen  observations. 
He  confessed  that  on  the  vessel  he  thought  they  were 
'stringing'  him  when  they  told  him  that  the  posts  for  the 
barbed  wire  fences  just  grew,  but  when  he  saw  countless 
miles  of  trees  in  straight  rows  with  the  wire  stretched  along 
the  trunks  he  paid  his  tribute  also  to  climate  and  soil.  He 
knew  that  naturally  trees  don't  grow  in  straight  rows  and 
he  found  the  explanation.  The  posts  are  poles  cut  from 
the  trees'  branches  and  when  stuck  in  the  ground  they 
shoot  up  so  rapidly  that  they  soon  are  trees. 

"The  North  Carolina  observer  never  got  over  his  wonder 
at  the  soil.  The  railroad  cuts  gave  him  a  chance  to  see 
that  it  was  not  surface  richness  and  he  easily  grasped  the 
explanation.  The  vegetation  grows  to  a  certain  height, 
then  dies  away,  rots  and  forms  fresh  layers  of  richness. 


32 

This  process  going  on  for  centuries  has  made  the  fertility 
of  the  land  inexhaustible. 

"The  utility  of  volcanic  eruptions  was  new  to  him  and 
was  explained  on  the  trip  to  Champerico.  This  is  the  great 
coffee  region.  It  comes  within  the  sphere  of  influence  of 
the  volcano  Santa  Maria.  When  Santa  Maria  was  sprink- 
ling both  the  sea  and  land  with  pumice  stone  and  ashes, 
on  many  of  the  fincas  (plantations)  there  was  just  enough  of 
this  lava  soil  after  the  rains  had  come  and  washed  away 
the  surface  of  the  deposit  to  renew  the  productiveness." 

In  another  way  an  idea  of  the  varied  products  of  agricul- 
tural industry  can  be  had  from  an  account  given  in  the 
British  Consular  reports  of  a  model  plantation.  This 
plantation  consisted  of  3,000  acres.  In  a  given  year  it 
produced  1,200,000  pounds  of  coffee,  300,000  pounds  of 
sugar,  300,000  bottles  of  the  by-product  of  sugar  known 
as  aguardiente  or  cane  rum,  22,000  gallons  of  milk.  Two 
thousand  head  of  cattle  were  raised.  On  this  plantation 
from  900  to  1,300  laborers  were  employed. 

COFFEE  OF  WORLD-WIDE  FAME. 

>  As  is  well  known,  Guatemala's  most  valuable  agricultural 
product  is  coffee.  The  fame  of  Guatemala  coffee  is  world- 
wide and  it  commands  the  highest  prices.  The  production 
in  average  years  is  about  70,500,000  pounds,  though  in  a 
recent  year  it  exceeded  80,000,000  pounds.  The  most 
productive  regions  are  in  the  departments  of  Guatemala, 
Amatitlan,  Sacatepequez,  Solola,  Retalhuleu,  Quezal- 
tenango,  San  Marcos,  Alta  Verapaz,  Baja  Verapaz,  Chi- 
maltenango,  Santa  Rosa  and  Escuintla. 

The  altitudes  at  which  the  coffee  plant  is  most  successfully 
cultivated  are  between  1,500  feet  and  5,000  feet  above 
sea  level,  according  to  the  locality  and  quality  of  the  soil. 
The  temperature  at  which  the  greatest  productiveness  is 
obtained  varies  from  a  minimum  of  60°  Fahrenheit  to  a 
maximum  of  90°.  In  the  lowlands  the  trees  have  to  be 
shaded  in  order  to  prevent  the  leaves  from  being  scorched 


33 

by  the  heat.  There  is  an  abundance  of  native  trees  which 
answers  this  purpose.  Occasionally,  too,  bananas  are 
raised  in  conjunction  with  coffee  since  their  broad  leaves 
furnish  an  excellent  protection.  *•-.' 

In  districts  where  the  mean  altitude  is  4,500  feet  a 
different  sort  of  protection  is  necessary  in  order  to  shelter 
the  coffee  leaves  from  the  northern  winds  which  blow  during 
the  months  of  December,  January,  and  February.  In 
these  high  altitudes  the  ranges  of  hills  form  the  best  natural 
protection.  To  bring  the  coffee  plant  to  full  production 
from  five  to  seven  years  are  required,  though  after  two  years 
the  bush  will  produce  about  two  pounds  of  the  berry 
annually.  The  coffee  plants  are  raised  in  nurseries  and 
afterwards  transplanted  to  the  cafetales  or  coffee  planta- 
tions. The  critical  season  for  the  crop  is  the  blooming 
period.  A  heavy  rainfall  while  the  trees  are  in  flower  will 
seriously  damage  the  plants  by  washing  away  the  pollen 
and  thus  preventing  fructification.  This  period  lasts  three 
or  four  days  when  the  blossoms  fall  and  the  cherry  or  berry 
begins  to  appear.  The  cherry  reaches  maturity  in  October 
and  is  ready  for  gathering  and  pulping,  that  is,  for  the 
removal  of  the  outer  shell  and  pulp.  After  this  process  it 
is  washed  and  carried  to  dry,  spread  out  in  brick  paved 
yards  exposed  to  the  sun.  The  grain  is  known  as  perga- 
mino,  or  shell  coffee,  after  the  removal  of  the  red  pulp, 
while  it  retains  the  inner  white  or  yellow  parchment  cover- 
ing. After  this  parchment  is  removed  it  is  known  as 
oro,  clean  coffee,  and  this  is  the  common  commercial  term. 

So  many  elements  enter  into  the  cost  of  planting  and 
bringing  to  maturity  a  coffee  plantation  that  it  is  difficult 
to  estimate  the  expenditure  necessary  to  ensure  a  given 
profit.  Experienced  coffee  growers  are  guided  largely  by 
their  knowledge  of  the  local  conditions  and  requirements. 
However,  a  reasonable  amount  of  capital  in  the  beginning 
is  necessary  and  many  investors  possessing  the  capital 
prefer  to  buy  fincas  or  plantations  that  are  already  produc- 
ing. 

The  government  of  Guatemala  lays  an  export  tax  of 


34 

one  dollar  in  gold.  Germany  takes  the  bulk  of  the  Guate- 
mala product,  though  Great  Britain  is  a  large  buyer  and 
the  United  States  is  receiving  larger  quantities  from  year 
to  year.  With  the  increased  facilities  for  transportation 
there  would  appear  to  be  an  excellent  opportunity  for 
dealers  to  make  a  specialty  of  Guatemala  coffee  in  the 
United  States,  for  the  article  once  introduced  would  be  sure 
to  have  an  increased  consumption. 

SUGAR  AND   OTHER   PROFITABLE   PRODUCTS. 

In  1890  Guatemala  was  producing  barely  enough  sugar 
for  its  own  consumption.  In  1904  it  exported  6,000,000 
pounds  to  the  United  States.  New  Orleans  is  the  nearest 
market,  though  shipments  also  may  be  made  to  Brooklyn. 
The  product  consists  of  white  loaf  sugar,  panela  or  coarse 
brown  cakes,  from  which  the  cane  rum  is  made,  mi  el  or 
molasses,  and  mascabado,  or  inferior  grades.  The  sugar 
cane  is  of  excellent  quality  and  the  production  is  abundant, 
especially  along  the  hot  coast  districts.  The  departments 
of  Escuintla,  Amatitlan,  and  Baja  Verapaz  are  the  districts 
in  which  the  largest  areas  are  under  cultivation.  As  a 
rule  the  small  sugar  mills  are  crude  and  modern  machinery 
has  not  been  introduced  to  a  great  extent,  although  the 
largest  plantations  are  already  supplied  with  the  latest 
improvements.  With  the  introduction  on  a  larger  scale  of 
modern  machinery  and  the  latest  processes  the  sugar 
industry  would  be  certain  to  afford  satisfactory  profits. 

Cacao  of  a  very  high  quality  is  produced  in  Guatemala 
and  the  native  article  commands  much  higher  prices  than 
that  produced  in  other  countries  and  brought  to  Guatemala 
for  sale.  The  productive  regions  are  the  tier r as  calienles 
or  hot  coast  lands.  The  principal  cacao  producing  districts 
are  Escuintla,  Suchitepequez,  Solola,  and  Retalhuleu.  The 
bean  is  most  productive  at  an  altitude  of  800  to  2,000  feet. 
In  some  cases  the  shrub  produces  a  pound  of  beans  every 
four  months  and  after  reaching  maturity  it  is  said  to  produce 
without  interruption  for  one  hundred  years. 

Notwithstanding  the  superior  quality  of  the  Guatemala 


35 

cacao  the  industry  has  not  been  carried  on  systematically, 
possibly  because  five  or  six  years  are  required  to  secure 
the  first  crop.  In  the  last  year  the  total  output  was  only 
34,000  pounds,  but  the  steady  demand  for  cacao  and  the 
certainty  of  good  prices  justifies  the  investment  of  capital 
which  can  await  five  or  six  years  for  the  first  returns.  The 
gathering  of  the  cacao  beans  requires  very  little  machinery 
and  few  laborers.  Chiefly  care  must  be  taken  not  to  hurt 
the  bean  or  almond  when  breaking  the  fruit  wherein  they 
are  contained.  One  day  of  fermentation  must  then  be 
given  to  them,  after  which  they  remain  exposed  to  the  sun 
for  six  or  eight  days,  when  they  are  ready  to  be  sent  to  the 
market. 

One  of  the  most  profitable  of  future  industries  in  Guate- 
mala undoubtedly  is  that  of  banana  culture.  There  are 
vast  productive  regions  on  the  Atlantic  slope  and  these  are 
certain  to  be  cultivated  since  the  building  of  the  Northern 
Railway  insures  opening  up  the  lands  by  giving  access  to 
the  New  Orleans  market  within  the  time  that  is  necessary 
for  gathering  and  shipping  the  fruit.  The  annual  produc- 
tion is  now  about  800,000  bunches,  of  which  one-half  are 
consumed  at  home  and  the  balance  shipped  to  the  United 
States.  It  is  estimated  that  within  a  year  after  the 
Northern  Railway  is  completed  the  shipments  to  the 
United  States  will  exceed  750,000  bunches  per  annum  and 
will  soon  amount  to  1,000,000  bunches. 

Tobacco  is  produced  in  a  number  of  districts  and  there 
is  much  suitable  soil  for  it,  but  up  to  this  time  it  has  been 
raised  only  for  local  consumption.  Rice  is  also  produced 
in  the  hot  coast  lands.  Cotton  is  grown  and  experiments 
have  shown  that  the  Sea  Island  cotton  thrives  in  Guate- 
mala. 

RUBBER  CULTIVATION  AN  INVITING  FIELD. 

For  investments  of  capital  that  is  willing  to  wait  returns 
there  is  no  more  inviting  field  than  the  cultivation  of  india 
rubber,  which  grows  wild  in  Guatemala.  Each  year  the 
demand  for  rubber  increases  and  the  price  rises.  The 


36 

coast  regions  where  the  wild  tree  flourishes  are  especially 
adapted  to  the  cultivation  of  the  product.  The  subject 
has  been  given  very  careful  attention  by  the  Guatemalan 
government,  which  caused  investigation  to  be  made  by 
scientists  who  were  familiar  with  the  native  agriculture. 
The  result  of  these  investigations  has  been  published  from 
time  to  time. 

The  wild  gum  tree  is  tall  with  smooth  greenish  white 
bark.  The  milk  which  is  the  mercantile  product  is  contained 
principally  in  the  fibres  which  are  attached  to  the  woody 
portion  of  the  tree  between  it  and  the  bark.  The  milk 
contains  about  60%  of  water  and  other  substances,  while 
the  remaining  40%  represents  the  salable  product.  The 
climate  most  appropriate  for  the  growth  of  the  rubber  tree 
is  that  of  the  hot  coast  lands  at  an  altitude  not  exceeding 
1,500  feet.  The  yield  of  the  cultivated  rubber  trees  has 
been  estimated  as  high  as  three  pounds  yearly  from  the 
sixth  year,  but  the  best  authorities  do  not  think  that  the 
trees  should  be  tapped  before  the  ninth  year  and  then  the 
grower  should  be  satisfied  with  an  annual  yield  of  two 
and  a  half  to  three  pounds  of  milk,  which  will  insure  one 
pound  of  rubber. 

An  estimate  of  the  cost  and  probable  yield  of  a  rubber 
plantation  as  made  by  Senor  Horta,  a  leading  authority, 
was  that  a  plantation  of  100,000  trees  would  require  ten 
caballerias  (about  1,100  to  1,200  acres),  and  would  have 
cost  after  ten  years  about  one  dollar  per  tree.  This  expense 
could  in  part  be  met  by  secondary  cultivation.  According 
to  the  calculations  one  crop  after  ten  years  should  produce 
double  the  amount  expended  in  that  time. 

The  government  encourages  the  cultivation  of  rubber,  a 
decree  having  been  issued  in  1899  which  provided  that 
for  every  20,000  rubber  plants  of  four  years  of  age  and 
planted  after  the  date  of  the  decree  the  owner  should  receive 
one  caballeria  (112  acres)  of  uncultivated  national  land. 
The  government,  however,  does  not  endorse  nor  recommend 
the  promotion  of  rubber  plantations  by  stock  companies 
which  seek  chiefly  to  sell  the  stock  among  small  investors 


37 

in  the  United  States.  All  such  schemes  should  be  carefully 
investigated  before  the  shares  are  bought  and  the  leading 
facts  in  regard  to  rubber  production,  including  the  necessity 
of  a  period  of  at  least  ten  years  for  the  successful  develop- 
ment of  a  plantation,  should  be  kept  in  mind. 

BOUNTY  FOR  HENNEQUEN. 

The  soil  of  Guatemala  in  the  opinion  of  experts  is  es- 
pecially adapted  to  the  cultivation  of  fibre  plants  of  which 
the  most  valuable  is  hennequen  or  hemp.  Maguey  or  wild 
hennequen  grows  in  various  localities,  particularly  in  the 
eastern  districts,  where  there  is  a  large  area  which  it  is 
believed  can  be  brought  under  profitable  cultivation  for 
commercial  purposes .  President  Estrada  Cabrera ,  in  order  to 
encourage  the  cultivation  of  hennequen,  has  provided  that 
a  bounty  shall  be  paid  to  the  cultivators  of  the  plant,  the 
scale  of  payment  being  graduated  according  to  the  size 
of  the  plantation.  Since  it  takes  from  four  to  five  years 
for  the  plant  to  mature  the  cultivators  are  allowed  to  receive 
one-half  the  bounty  two  years  after  the  hennequen  is  planted 
and  the  balance  at  the  end  of  the  four  years.  A  bounty 
is  also  to  be  paid  for  the  exportation  of  each  100  pounds 
of  hennequen  and  the  machinery  necessary  on  the  planta- 
tion is  to  be  imported  free  of  duty.  As  a  further  induce- 
ment- to  engage  in  the  cultivation  of  the  fibre  the  natives 
who  produce  hennequen  are  to  be  exempted  from  military 
service  in  a  proportion  fixed  relatively  to  the  number  of 
acres  under  cultivation.  This  experiment  with  hennequen 
is  especially  important  in  view  of  the  fact  that  soil  which 
is  not  suitable  for  coffee,  sugar  cane  or  cacao  is  thought  to 
be  especially  well  adapted  to  this  plant. 

The  number  of  medicinal  plants  produced  in  Guatemala 
is  infinite.  One  scientist  gives  a  list  of  339,  which  includes 
many  balsams  and  the  aromatic  plants,  such  as  sarsa- 
parilla  and  vanilla.  The  conditions  of  vanilla  cultivation 
are  similar  to  those  in  Mexico.  The  vine  after  five  years  is 
in  full  bearing  and  will  produce  from  15  to  40  beans.  It  is 
estimated  that  a  five-acre  vanilla  plantation  will  yield 


38 

sufficient  income  to  render  its  owner  independent,  but  this 
is  only  by  the  most  careful  attention  in  cultivation. 

MANY  VARIETIES  OF  VALUABLE  WOOD. 

There  are  said  to  be  1 50  kinds  of  Guatemala  wood  which 
are  commercially  valuable,  and  the  number  of  species 
exceeds  400.  The  timber  area  includes  the  littoral  forests 
in  a  narrow  belt  along  the  Pacific  and  Atlantic  coasts; 
the  humid  forests  mixed  with  the  prairie  fields  which  cover 
the  plains  from  the  foot  of  the  Andean  Cordilleras  to  the 
Pacific ;  the  moist  forests  of  the  hot  zone  and  the  temperate 
zone  found  along  the  foothills  of  the  volcanic  chain  and  in 
the  northern  and  eastern  parts  of  the  country;  the  humid 
forests  of  the  cold  zone;  the  pine  and  oak  forests  in  the 
upland  plains;  the  savannas  and  chaparral  consisting  of 
small  trees  and  bushes;  the  savannas  with  pines  along  the 
Atlantic  coast  and  the  savannas  of  the  cold  zone  on  the 
highest  tablelands  of  the  mountain. 

In  the  report  of  the  Intercontinental  Railway  Survey 
Lieutenant  Hill  gives  a  list  of  trees  found  in  southeastern 
Guatemala  which  is  another  illustration  of  the  varied 
timber  resources  of  the  country.  The  list  is  as  follows: 

Aconacaste,  conacaste,  guanacaste — a  light  brown  wood 
rather  soft  and  resembling  inferior  walnut. 

Amarillo — yellowish,  hard,  plentiful,  strong;  lasts  well 
in  water  or  ground;  used  for  pillars  and  girders  in  native 
houses. 

Cedro — reddish,  easily  worked;  used  much  for  boards, 
not  very  strong,  warps  easily. 

Caoba — mahogany. 

Chichipate — hard,   fine-grained;  used  in  wagon-making, 

Chiche — straight  grained;  lasts  well  above  ground. 

Chico — straight  grained;  takes  high  polish. 

Granadillo — dark  brown,  strong,  plentiful;  good  for 
construction. 

Guachipilin — good  for  construction. 

Guapinol — hard,  resembles  oak  in  texture. 

Jicaro — bears  gourdlike  fruit;  plentiful  on  llanos,  used 
in  making  saddle-trees. 


39 

L,aurel — resembles  chestnut;  used  for  furniture. 

Madre  cacao — hard,  takes  fine  polish;  good  for  posts. 

Mario  or  Palo  Colorado — a  fine  wood  somewhat  like 
mahogany. 

Matilishuate — grows  large  and  straight;  used  for  wagqn 
boxes. 

Mora — dye  wood . 

Jocote  de  Fraile — handsome  wood,  takes  high  polish. 

Ronron — fine,  hardwood,  takes  high  polish. 

Tempisque — reddish,  resembles  mahogany  in  weight  and 
texture. 

Volador — fine  tree,  tall,  straight  trunk;  good  for  bridges 
and  roofs. 

With  such  a  vast  wealth  of  timber  the  importance  of 
the  railway  projects  which  open  up  the  forest  regions  and 
make  the  markets  of  the  United  States  and  Europe  acces- 
sible will  be  appreciated. 

ENCOURAGEMENT  TO  LIVESTOCK  INDUSTRIES. 

Cattle  raising  and  dairy  farming  are  among  the  most 
profitable  agricultural  industries  of  Guatemala,  while  horse- 
breeding  also  can  be  made  to  pay  unusually  well.  The 
native  horse  is  small  but  very  strong  and  is  tireless.  The 
race  horses  and  others  obtained  through  the  crossing  with 
foreign  breeds  imported  from  the  United  States  and  from 
Spain,  England  and  South  America  have  given  most  satis- 
factory results. 

Dairy  farming  especially  in  the  vicinity  of  the  cities  yields 
large  dividends.  The  cattle  are  largely  three-quarters  or 
half-bred  natives  and  Holsteins  and  Durhams.  The  pure 
native  cows  give  much  richer  milk  than  the  imported  stock, 
but  they  yield  a  very  small  quantity.  The  milk  of  the 
thoroughbred  imported  cows  is  thin,  owing  probably  to  the 
unsuitable  nature  of  the  fodder,  and  thus  the  half-bred  cows 
are  the  most  profitable. 

The  highlands  of  the  interior  afford  very  fair  grazing  for 
cattle  throughout  the  year.  The  climate  is  mild  and 
equable  and  the  stock  can  remain  in  the  pastures  from 


40 

January  till  December,  while  no  losses  are  suffered  from 
severe  weather  in  winter.  Most  of  the  country  is  well 
watered.  The  native  mules  are  superior  to  the  horses  for 
long  journeys  or  heavy  loads  and  as  a  rule  they  command 
higher  prices.  Pigs  are  raised  with  little  difficulty  and  fetch 
a  high  price,  since  pork  is  one  of  the  favorite  foods  on 
many  of  the  plantations  and  in  the  villages  inhabited  by 
Indians.  The  hogs  are  allowed  to  run  loose  and  feed  on 
nourishing  roots,  acorns  and  maize.  The  sheep  industry 
is  capable  of  development  at  the  hands  of  experienced  sheep- 
raisers.  There  are  many  flocks  and  the  quality  of  both 
the  mutton  and  the  wool  is  capable  of  improvement. 

MINES  AND  MINING. 

The  mineral  riches  of  Guatemala,  while  not  unknown, 
may  be  said  to  be  unexploited.  Owing  to  the  varied  geo- 
logical formations  the  belief  both  of  geologists  and  of  practical 
miners  is  that  they  offer  a  promising  field  for  development. 
The  minerals  include  quartz  and  gold,  silver  and  galenas, 
copper,  coal  and  lignite,  manganese,  asbestos,  graphite, 
kaolin,  opals,  slate,  alum,  marble,  silver,  mica,  iron,  sulphur, 
lead. 

The  mining  archives  of  colonial  days  show  that  between 
the  years  1627  and  1820  more  than  1,300  mines  of  gold, 
silver,  lead,  copper,  tin,  iron,  and  one  of  quicksilver,  were 
discovered  and  worked,  and  were  a  source  of  great  revenue 
both  to  the  Church  and  the  State.  History  records  that 
during  the  earliest  Spanish  occupancy  of  that  country 
enormous  quantities  of  gold  and  silver  were  taken  from 
those  mines.  At  one  time  more  than  one  hundred  and 
fifty  very  rich  mines  were  worked  there.  From  one  group 
the  mint  of  Guatemala  coined  silver  to  the  amount  of 
$43,000,000,  besides  what  was  shipped  directly  to  Europe. 

In  an  official  report  made  by  the  Director  of  the  chemical 
laboratory  to  the  Minister  of  Finance  these  statements  are 
made,  based  on  samples  that  had  been  submitted  for  analy- 
sis and  which  were  obtained  for  the  most  part  in  the 
eastern  region  of  the  country. 


UNIVERSITY 

OF 


"Zinc,  copper,  lead,  and  silver  predominate  in  these 
regions,  being  generally  found  in  argentiferous  blends  and 
galenas,  and  sometimes  both  metals  in  conjunction  with 
carbonates  of  copper.  The  proportion  of  the  lead  varies 
from  20  to  2 5%  in  the  galenas  and  the  blends  contain  from 
15  to  40%  of  zinc. 

"The  proportion  of  silver  varies  from  200  grammes  to 
7  kilos  (17  pounds),  allowing  one  to  calculate  on  an  average 
of  from  2  to  3  kilos.  The  beds  extend  to  the  tablelands 
on  which  the  capital  is  situated,  stretching  as  far  as  the 
Department  of  Jalapa,  where  the  lead  disappears  some- 
times completely,  the  silver  being  found  alone.  The  veins 
stretch  to  the  valley  of  the  Motagua,  disappearing  for  some 
time  oh  the  left  bank  of  that  river  and  reappearing  again 
to  the  north  of  Solama ,  folio  wing  a  straight  line  to  Huehue- 
tenango,  although  the  quantity  of  silver  in  this  region  is 
less  than  in  the  beds  in  the  southeast  of  the  Republic. 

"Copper,  one  of  the  metals  which  is  most  abundant  in 
the  country,  is  generally  found  in  oxicarbonate  in  beds  of 
sediment.  It  appears  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  capital 
and  various  other  points.  These  beds  continue  up  to  the 
Mexican  frontier  along  the  banks  of  the  river  Salega  and 
round  the  town  of  Cuilco,  but  the  nature  of  the  metal 
changes  little  by  little,  passing  from  the  carbonates  to 
oxisulphates  mixed  with  iron  and  soon  the  copper  disap- 
pears altogether.  In  the  eastern  region  abundant  deposits 
of  carbonates  of  copper  are  found  principally  in  the  Depart- 
ment of  Chiquimula,  mixed  in  many  cases  with  other  metals 
such,  as  zinc,  lead,  and  silver. 

' '  Lignite  of  excellent  quality  is  found  in  beds  near  the 
Atlantic  coast,  a  very  great  consideration  in  the  develop- 
ment of  mineral  industries." 

Captain  Rae  of  the  United  States,  who  spent  several 
years  in  Guatemala  and  who  wrote  authoritatively  con- 
cerning the  mineral  resources  of  the  country,  said  that  he 
had  found  near  the  northwestern  frontier  large  quantities 
of  low  grade  gold  sulphuret  ores  and  also  rich  lead  ores 
carrying  a  small  percentage  of  silver  as  well  as  some  good 


copper  carbonates.  He  said  that  the  lead  ores  were  of  the 
best  clean  carbonates,  easily  smelted  by  fuel  alone,  and 
had  been  rudely  exploited  principally  for  the  lead  they 
contained.  These  silver  lead  mines  of  low  grades  of  silver 
were  in  the  vicinity  of  Chiantla,  and  the  belt  extended,  he 
said,  northwest,  breaking  out  again  in  heavy  deposits 
bearing  silver  from  $12  to  $40  a  ton  and  lead  80%. 

Captain  Rae  gave  the  following  further  details: 

"  Still  further  east  in  the  Lacodor  country  are  found 
immense  deposits  of  the  same  character  of  ore,  which  seemed 
to  lie  as  if  thrown  up  in  volcanic  upheavals.  In  some 
places  the  lead  is  found  in  small  nuggets  entirely  pure. 
Large  deposits  of  black  lead  or  plumbago  exist  both  north 
and  south  of  Huehuetenango  of  a  good  class  and  ready  for 
commerce. 

' '  Auriferous  gravel  beds  are  found  at  different  points  on 
the  Rio  Grande  in  the  Department  of  Baja  Verapaz  which 
prospect  well  for  heavy  course  gold.  The  working  of  these 
beds  is  confined  to  the  immediate  river  banks,  done  by  the 
natives  in  a  very  rude  manner,  merely  scooping  out  the 
choicest  streaks  of  goldbearing  gravel  and  washing  it  in 
wooden  bowls.  These  beds  seem  to  be  well  defined  and 
extend  back  through  the  flats  to  the  hills. 

"Also  some  gold  formation  is  found  along  the  Rio  Plata- 
nos  and  Vacas  two  affluents  of  the  Rio  Grande  that  flow 
into  it  from  the  south  side  and  nearly  opposite  to  one  of 
these  goldbearing  gravel  beds.  Further  down  the  river 
on  the  north  mountain  range  there  exists  asbestos  in 
several  places  and  from  a  surface  prospect  the  texture  is 
of  a  good  variety  and  free  from  all  foreign  substances 
varying  in  color  from  deep  gray  to  snowy  white,  the  fibreD 
measuring  as  much  as  6  inches  in  length. 

"In  the  Department  of  Izabal  lying  on  the  Atlantic  or 
gulf  coast,  on  the  lower  waters  of  the  Motagua  and  Polichis 
rivers,  there  exists  rich  and  extensive  beds  of  gold  placers 
which  have  been  worked  for  several  years  in  a  primitive 
way  and  have  yielded  a  large  amount  of  gold  dust. 


43 

"  In  the  foothills  of  Livingston  stone  coal  has  been  found 
of  the  lignite  variety  and  said  to  make  good  combustible. 
On  the  opposite  side  of  the  Gulf  of  Dulce  from  the  coal 
deposits  are  large  deposits  of  magnetic  iron  ores,  ranging 
from  60  to  70  per  cent,  of  iron.  These  deposits  lie  only  a 
few  leagues  from  water  communication  on  the  Gulf  and  also 
close  to  the  Northern  Railway." 

The  following  description  of  the  various  mineral  districts 
is  from  The  Bristol  Board  of  Trade  Journal: 

"The  principal  known  mining  districts  of  Guatemala  are 
situated  on  the  eastern  boundary,  both  to  the  north  and  also 
the  south,  in  the  Departments  of  Chiquimula  and  Izabal, 
adjoining  the  Republic  of  Honduras  and  that  of  Salvador. 
These  districts  are  mountainous,  and,  owing  to  their  com- 
plete isolation  and  lack  of  communication  with  the  other 
parts  of  the  Republic  and  the  difficulty  of  procuring  supplies, 
there  being  at  the  moment  very  few  roads,  this  part  is  not 
generally  known  to  the  outer  world. 

"  On  the  western  boundary,  in  the  Department  of  Huehue- 
tenango  and  near  to  Chiantla,  there  are  said  to  be  very 
rich  copper  mines,  similar  to  those  of  Chiapas,  in  Mexico. 
These  are  now  being  explored,  but  so  far  no  copper  has 
been  found,  though  the  district  is  rich  in  lead  and  a  small 
percentage  of  silver.  The  assays  that  have  come  to  hand 
show  56  per  cent,  of  lead  and  40  ounces  per  ton  of  silver. 
In  many  other  parts  of  the  Republic  mines  have  been 
discovered  and  mining  rights  secured,  such  as  at  San 
Cristobal  and  Aguil,  in  the  Department  of  Alta  Verapaz ;  near 
Rabinal  and  Pichec,  in  Baja  Verapaz;  at  San  Pedro,  in 
the  Department  of  Guatemala;  also  at  Mataquescuintla, 
in  the  mines  of  Algeria  and  Rosario,  in  the  Department 
of  Santa  Rosa ;  at  Zalcuapa  and  Joyabaj ,  on  the  Rio  Grande, 
in  the  Department  of  El  Quiche;  but  the  only  mines  that 
have  recently  been  worked,  and  which  have  given  and  are 
giving  fair  results,  are  those  of  Quebradas  de  Oro,  on  the 
River  Bobos,  in  the  Department  of  Izabal  where  gold 
has  been  washed  in  paying  quantities. 


44 

"The  district  where  mines  have  been  denounced  (pre- 
empted) and  in  some  instances  worked,  lies  between  the 
Rio  de  Concepcion  to  the  north  and  the  Rio  de  las  Minas 
to  the  south;  the  mining  district  alluded  to  is  nearly  due 
east  of  L,os  Sillones,  on  the  finca  of  San  Jose.  This  estate 
is  in  the  Department  of  Chiquimula,  and  a  society  was 
formed  under  the  name  of  Societe  Horta  y  Cia.,  which 
obtained  mining  rights  from  the  Government  for  a  term 
of  fifteen  years  with  the  right  to  import  free  of  duty  all 
material,  machinery,  and  necessary  appliances.  But  until 
the  present  time  very  little  has  been  done,  owing  to  the 
isolated  position  of  these  mines  and  the  difficulty  of  estab- 
lishing communication,  though  the  construction  of  a  small 
line,  which  might  connect  with  the  Guatemala  or  Northern 
Railway  at  Chiquimula,  has  been  under  consideration,  but 
the  funds  for  the  carrying  out  of  this  project  have,  it  is 
understood,  been  lacking.  This,  if  built,  would  do  away 
with  the  transportation  difficulty." 

There  is  no  difficulty  in  the  work  of  mining  in  Guatemala 
since  the  climate  in  the  mining  regions  is  temperate  and 
healthful. 


CHAPTER  IV. 
TRADE  AND  MARKETS. 

Guatemala,  because  of  its  nearness,  is  an  unusually  good 
market  for  the  products  of  the  United  States.  With  the 
increase  in  the  transportation  facilities  which  will  result 
from  railway  building  and  other  transportation  enterprises 
that  will  add  to  the  ocean  shipping  facilities  the  business 
should  increase  greatly  if  merchants  and  manufacturers  in 
the  United  States  choose  to  take  advantage  of  it. 

Official  support  is  given  this  view  by  the  reports  of  the 
American  Consuls  in  Guatemala.  Consul  General  Winslow 
has  frequently  called  attention  to  the  advantages  which 
may  be  obtained.  In  one  report  he  stated  that  large 
quantities  of  groceries,  flour,  potatoes,  shoes,  drygoods, 
and  clothing  come  from  the  United  States,  but  Germany 
and  England  seem  to  have  the  lead  in  machinery  and  hard- 
ware. There  is  surely  a  fine  opening  in  these  latter  lines 
for  exporters  of  the  United  States,  but  they  must  be  in 
position  to  push  their  goods  personally,  to  give  longer 
credits,  and  to  take  more  pains  with  packing.  In  all,  it 
is  safe  to  say,  there  are  $8,000,000  of  American  capital 
invested  in  Guatemala  and  there  is  an  opening  for  much 
more,  if  it  is  backed  by  the  right  kind  of  management. 

In  a  report  to  the  British  Foreign  Office  in  1905  Mr. 
Hervey,  the  English  Consul,  stated  that  as  far  as  actual 
volume  of  business  was  concerned,  as  shown  in  the  imports 
and  exports,  there  appeared  to  have  been  a  distinct  improve- 
ment in  the  general  trade  of  the  country  compared  with 
immediately  preceding  years.  The  imports  were  the 
largest  for  the  past  seven  years.  The  revenue  of  the 
country  showed  a  great  improvement  all  around,  being,  in 
fact,  nearly  double  that  of  1903,  the  most  important  in- 
creases being  shown  in  import  and  export  duties,  the  former 
benefiting  by  the  50  per  cent,  of  their  total  payable  in  gold, 
and  the  latter  by  the  tax  of  $i  gold  per  quintal  which  has 
been  collected  throughout  the  year. 


46 

The  outlook  for  the  future  was,  the  report  said,  more 
favorable  than  it  had  been  for  many  years.  The  completion 
of  the  Guatemala  Northern  Railway  would  shorten  the 
distance  from  Europe  and  the  United  States  and  promote 
trade.  Already  German  and  British  steamers  were  calling 
at  Puerto  Barrios  in  addition  to  those  of  the  United  Fruit 
Company.  The  greater  steadiness  of  exchange  and  the 
fall  in  the  gold  premium  were  further  factors  of  importance 
in  restoring  confidence.  With  continued  peace,  and  with 
it  the  prospect  of  increased  labor  facilities,  so  that  the 
agricultural  and  mineral  wealth  to  be  won  from  the  soil 
may  attain  to  its  fullest  development,  brighter  days  were 
dawning  for  Guatemala. 

ARTICLES  BROUGHT  FROM  OTHER  COUNTRIES. 

A  general  statement  regarding  the  articles  which  Guate- 
mala buys  abroad  and  which  therefore  are  of  interest  to 
exporters  is  as  follows: 

The  principal  imports  consist  of  dry  goods,  almost  exclu- 
sively cotton  manufactures,  brought  from  Great  Britain, 
the  United  States,  and  Germany.  In  this  branch  British 
manufacture  commands  the  market,  the  imports  from  the 
United  States  and  Germany  being  relatively  small.  The 
more  important  articles  are  gray  cloths;  bleached  shirtings, 
7-8  and  9-8  prints;  fancy  cloths;  gray,  white,  and  blue 
drills;  colored  drills;  handkerchiefs;  gray  and  dyed  yarns; 
Turkey  red  yarns ;  sewing  cottons ;  trimmings ;  cotton  blank- 
ets, etc.  Of  these  goods  about  75  per  cent,  are  of  British 
origin,  15  per  cent.  American,  and  10  per  cent.  German. 
American  manufacturers  compete  chiefly  in  drills,  denims, 
blankets,  prints,  gray  cloths,  and  bleached  shirtings,  while 
German  goods  imported  consist  chiefly  of  drills,  prints, 
Turkey  red  yarns,  blankets,  and  trimmings. 

Woolen  goods  are  not  in  very  great  demand ;  the  principal 
lines  are  blankets,  shawls,  braids,  hats,  Berlin  wool,  and 
but  few  piece  goods. 

Hats  are  imported  mostly  from  the  United  States,  Ger- 
many, and  only  a  few  from  the  United  Kingdom;  shawls 


47 

from  Germany,  principally;  piece  goods  from  Germany, 
France,  and  the  United  Kingdom. 

Silks  are  not  in  demand,  excepting  floss  silks  imported 
from  China,  ribbons  from  Switzerland,  France,  and  Ger- 
many. Regarding  hardware  generally,  approximately  50 
per  cent,  is  imported  from  Germany,  30  per  cent,  from  the 
United  States,  and  20  per  cent,  from  the  United  Kingdom. 

The  principal  imports  from  the  United  States  consist  of 
machetes,  axes,  and  hoes,  besides  tools  generally  of  the 
better  classes,  corn  mills,  plows,  sewing  machinery,  outfits 
for  building  purposes,  saws,  barbed  wire,  files,  screws, 
cutlery,  ropes,  brushes,  enameled  goods,  paints,  and  var- 
nishes and  breadstuffs. 

The  imports  from  the  United  Kingdom  are  chiefly  com- 
posed of  galvanized-iron  sheets,  galvanized-iron  goods, 
coffee  machinery,  copper  sheets,  tin  goods,  machetes,  hoes, 
sickles,  picks,  pickaxes,  saltpeter,  pans  (used  on  sugar 
plantations),  iron  sheets,  saws,  padlocks,  cutlery,  saddlery, 
bits,  spurs,  brass  valves  and  cocks,  pottery,  cartridges, 
also  preserves  and  biscuits. 

From  Germany  are  brought  all  kinds  of  cheap  tools, 
machinery,  sewing  machines,  cutlery,  machetes,  bar  iron, 
enameled  goods,  pottery,  locks,  screws,  nails,  window  glass, 
brushes,  paper,  matches,  stearin  and  ceresin,  part  of  these 
goods  being  also  brought  from  Belgium  and  the  Netherlands, 
while  France  ships  tools  for  shoemakers'  and  saddlers'  use. 

The  articles  which  Guatemala  buys  in  exchange  for  her 
coffee,  sugar,  fruits,  woods  and  other  products  in  the 
customs  classification  are  divided  into  three  groups;  that 
is,  articles  of  prime  necessity,  articles  of  luxury  or  conve- 
nience, and  articles  for  the  industries. 

The  first  and  most  important  group  includes  cotton  and 
woolen  goods,  wheat  flour,  rice,  corn,  potatoes,  salt,  wax 
and  stearine  candles,  matches,  soap,  petroleum,  glass  and 
earthenware,  and  kitchen  hardware. 

The  second  group  covers  the  finer  grade  of  woolens, 
silks,  mineral  waters,  liquors,  preserves  in  cans,  manufac- 
tured tobacco,  glassware,  porcelain,  toys,  musical  instru- 
ments, perfumery,  etc. 


x^^J 

ff  OF  THE 

I    UNIVERSITY    j 


48 

The  third  group  consists  of  coal,  woodworking  machinery, 
cured  hides,  raw  cotton,  sacks,  lubricating  oils,  farm  imple- 
ments and  a  variety  of  machinery. 

CLASS   OF   IMPORTS   FROM  THE   UNITED   STATES. 

The  shipments  with  which  up  to  this  time  the  United 
States  has  been  most  successful  in  furnishing  Guatemala 
can  be  understood  from  a  summary  of  the  articles  sent 
out  under  a  consular  invoice  from  various  ports.  The 
exportations  from  the  port  of  New  Orleans  during  a  recent 
year  were  as  follows: 

NAME  OF  ARTICLES.  VALUE. 

Linseed  oil : $168 

Petroleum,  etc 2>534 

Tar 255 

Live  animals    5,447 

Rice 974 

Empty  barrels 116 

Coal    , _  .» , .  185 

Cement -^.,.  •  •  • 422 

Cistern  materials  .  .  . ,  .  648 

Dynamite 249 

Drugs 1,972 

Hardware    19,468 

Cotton  goods ' 45,733 

Iron  bars 338 

Wheat  flour 15,817 

Surgical  instruments 281 

Locomotives 7,465 

Earthenware 1,122 

Manufactured  woods,  railroad  ties,  etc 55,772 

Indian  corn J6,335 

Malt , 474 

Cable  rope i  ,874 

Gentlemen's  furnishings  . . 2,724 

Gasolene  motors 285 

Furniture 657 

Umbrellas 444 


49 

NAME  OF  ARTICLES.  VALUE. 

Provisions $23,127 

Bridge  material 18,794 

Salt 2,136 

Hats 452 

Whiskey 978 

Shoes 1,531 

From  the  port  of  Mobile  shipments  were  as  follows: 

Wheat  flour $10,196 

Cotton  goods 9>9i6 

Canned  meats ". 2,108 

Cornmeal 1,316 

Hardware 804 

Alimentary  conserves    777 

Butter 676 

Beer  in  bottles 572 

Petroleum 523 

Vegetables 507 

Coal 420 

Hay 405 

Dried  fish 376 

Footwear 362 

Stearine  candles 317 

Matches 300 

Condensed  milk 238 

Soap 228 

Lard 206 

Fruit  preserves 204 

Cheese    

Rice 

Miscellaneous  food  products 1,700 

The  exports  from  New  York,  which  average  about  $75,000 

per  month,  are  composed  chiefly  of  the  following  articles: 

Galvanized  wire  Lubricating  oil 

Alimentary  articles  Electrical  equipments 

Betum  Iron  pipes 


50 

Glassware  Cured  hides 

Beer  Drugs 

Photographic  material  Hardware 

Cotton  goods  Agricultural  implements 

Soap  Jewelry 

Earthenware  Sewing  machines 

Railway  material  Medicines 

Typewriters  Miscellaneous  machinery 

Plated  goods  Perfumery 

Paper  Petroleum 

Watches  Weighing  scales 

Hats  Whiskey 

Chintz  I/eather  ware 

From  the  port  of  San  Francisco  the  annual  shipments 
amount  to  approximately  $1,000,000.  The  principal  arti- 
cles are  flour,  wheat,  hops,  corn,  barley,  oats,  cotton,  furni- 
ture, machinery,  beers,  wines,  and  whiskies.  The  articles 
imported  at  San  Francisco  are  chiefly  coffee,  sugar,  cacao, 
rubber,  hides  and  lumber. 

How  THE  COMMERCE  is  DIVIDED. 

While  the  United  States  has  a  fair  share  of  the  trade 
the  proportion  is  not  as  large  as  it  might  be  if  systematic 
efforts  were  made.  In  the  last  year  for  which  statistics  are 
available  the  foreign  commerce  of  Guatemala  amounted 
to  $12,593,000,  of  which  $5,041,000  was  imports  and 
$7,552,000  exports.  Germany,  which  takes  the  bulk  of  the 
coffee  crop,  is  the  largest  consumer.  In  the  year  quoted 
it  took  53.79%  of  the  total  exportations  from  Guatemala 
North  America  (chiefly  United  States)  25.86%.  England, 
15-37%.  and  France  2.4%. 

The  exportation  of  the  various  countries  to  Guatemala 
in  percentage  terms  was  as  follows:  United  States  36.59%; 
England,  22.62%;  Germany,  19.97%;  France,  9.21%;  South 
America,  2.82%;  Central  America,  1.83%;  Mexico,  1.69%; 
Spain,  1.54%;  Italy,  1.32%;  Belgium  and  Holland,  1.27%; 
other  countries,  1.14%. 


In  detail  the  value  of  the  goods  imported  by  Guatemala 
in  the  given  year  was:  from  Germany,  $1,019,000;  United 
States,  $1,442,000;  England,  $1,038,000;  France,  $175,000; 
Belgium,  $114,000.  No  other  country  except  the  above 
exported  to  Guatemala  goods  exceeding  $100,000  in  value. 
Of  the  exports  from  Guatemala,  chiefly  coffee,  as  previously 
stated,  Germany  took  $3,508,000;  the  United  States 
$2,292,000;  England,  $1,282,000. 

President  Estrada  Cabrera  in  his  annual  message  com- 
mented on  the  balance  of  trade  in  favor  of  Guatemala  and 
expressed  himself  very  hopefully  concerning  the  measures  of 
internal  development  which  could  be  carried  on  while  the 
conditions  of  foreign  commerce  were  so  satisfactory. 

Since  a  portion  of  the  revenue  of  Guatemala  is  raised 
from  the  export  tax  on  coffee  it  is  possible  to  maintain  a 
very  moderate  schedule  of  import  duties  and  this  is  done. 
The  average  duty  on  the  group  of  articles  described  under 
the  heading  of  prime  necessity  is  23.67%  ad  valorem. 
On  the  second  group  30.84%  and  on  the  third  group  7.60%. 
The  duties  are  equitably  distributed  so  as  to  bear  lightly 
on  everything  that  enters  into  the  industrial  upbuilding  of 
the  country.  Moreover,  special  concessions  are  sometimes 
made  on  material  for  railway  and  other  enterprises  which 
enter  into  the  national  development. 

The  general  rules  regarding  the  application  of  the  tariff 
are  very  clear.  They  are  formulated  with  a  view  to  saving 
annoyance  to  shippers  and  are  specific  enough  to  avoid 
uncertainty.  Import  duties  are  not  high.  The  list  of 
articles  which  it  is  prohibited  to  import  is  a  short  one. 

The  charges  for  invoices  on  shipments  to  Guatemala  are 
as  follows: 

Ship's  manifest .$10.00. 

Validating  invoices  of  from          $i  to  $100 7.00. 

loo  "     500 10.00. 

501   "    1000 14.00. 

looi   "  3000 16.00. 

3001   "  6000 20.00. 


52 

For  each  additional  $1000  the  Consuls  will  collect  $2. 

The  government  officials  of  Guatemala  and  the  merchants 
gave  hearty  support  to  the  project  of  an  exposition  ship 
or  floating  exposition  which  was  undertaken  on  the  Pacific 
coast  in  order  to  display  American  products  and  manu- 
factures and  at  the  same  time  familiarize  American  firms 
with  the  products  of  other  countries. 

EXCHANGE  AND  BANKS. 

In  the  conduct  of  its  foreign  commerce  reasonably  long 
credits  are  required  by  the  merchants  of  Guatemala,  but 
always  under  fixed  conditions.  When  the  coffee  crop  is 
shipped  bills  on  Europe  and  on  New  York  can  always  be 
procured  at  reasonable  exchange  and  the  obligations  be 
met  in  this  manner.  Since  the  balance  of  trade  is  in 
favor  of  Guatemala  there  is  always  the  certainty  of  funds  for 
exchange. 

Under  President  Estrada  Cabrera's  administration  the 
banks  of  the  country  are  subject  to  a  regulation  somewhat 
similar  to  the  national  banks  of  the  United  States.  Various 
decrees  have  been  issued  governing  the  emission  of  bank- 
notes. The  latest  decree  institutes  a  special  bank  exami- 
nation project  and  requires  all  the  financial  institutions  to 
give  an  account  of  their  condition  and  operations  to  this 
Department. 

The  following  statistics  as  to  the  leading  banks  of  Guate- 
mala have  been  compiled  from  recent  reports: 

GUATEMALAN  BANK  (BANCO  DE  GUATEMALA). 

Capital  subscribed  and  totally  paid    .      .  $2,500,000  oo 

Reserve  fund 655,000  oo 

Contingent  fund 292,208  67 

Fund  available  for  dividends   ....  200,000  oo 
Manager:  Carlos  Gallusser. 


53 


OCCIDENT AL  BANK  (BANCO  DE  OCCIDENTE). 

Capital  authorized $2,000,000  oo 

Capital  paid         1,650,000  oo 

Reserve  fund 1,200,000  oo 

Contingent  fund 1,200,000  oo 

Manager:  Rufino  Ibarguen. 


INTERNATIONAL  BANK  (BANCO  INTERNACIONAL). 

Capital  subscribed  and  totally  paid    .      .  $2,000,000  oo 

Reserve  fund .  1,507,000  oo 

Contingent  fund       .      .      .      .      .      .      .  281,918  76 

Manager:  Carlos  B.  Pullin. 


COLUMBIAN  BANK  (BANCO  COLOMBIANO). 

Capital  paid .  $1,776,000  oo 

Reserve  fund       .      .      .      .      .      .      .      .  797,747  94 

Sinking  fund .  454,189  84 

Fund  available  for  dividends         .      .      .  69,22774 
Director:  F.  L.  de  Villa. 


AMERICAN  BANK  (BANCO  AMERICANO). 

Capital  authorized $1,200,000  oo 

Manager:  A.  Beckford. 


AGRICULTURAL  MORTGAGE  BANK  (BANCO  AGRICOLA- 
HIPOTECARIO)  . 

Capital  authorized   .      .      .      .      .      ,      .       $12.000,000  oo 
Manager:  A.  Prentice. 


54 

All  these  are  banks  of  emission  and  discount  with  head- 
quarters in  Guatemala  City  and  with  branches  in  the  other 
principal  cities  of  the  departments.  They  also  to  some 
degree  supply  the  place  of  mercantile  agencies  and  report 
financial  standing  of  individuals,  firms  and  companies  upon 
solicitation. 

It  is  known  to  be  the  great  ambition  of  President  Estrada 
Cabrera  to  place  the  finances  of  Guatemala  on  a  solid  basis  dur- 
ing his  present  term.  The  rate  of  exchange  under  the  stability 
now  afforded  and  the  improved  industrial  and  commercial 
conditions  has  been  steadily  falling. 

A  final  word  concerning  the  opportunities  for  American 
enterprise  is  convincing  when  it  comes  from  official  sources. 
In  one  of  his  reports  Consul  General  Winslow  said: 

"  During  the  past  few  months  the  exporters  of  the  United 
States  have  been  doing  some  effective  work  in  this  Republic. 
There  have  been  several  commercial  travelers  here  study- 
ing the  conditions  and  taking  sample  orders.  Many  others 
have  been  asking  for  information  from  this  Consulate- 
General,  which  has  been  able  to  give  valuable  information. 
If  this  field  is  properly  worked  and  sufficiently  long  credit 
is  given,  practically  nothing  but  American  goods  need  be 
found  in  the  markets  of  Guatemala,  for  they  are  generally 
conceded  to  be  the  best.  This  market  is  worth  cultivating, 
for  the  next  few  years  will  see  great  development  here. 
Everything  points  that  way,  and  the  natural  resources  are 
great.  The  opening  up  of  the  new  railroad  to  the  Atlantic 
coast  at  Puerto  Barrios  will  do  wonders  for  the  country. 
More  attention  is  being  paid  to  the  packing  of  goods  shipped 
to  this  country.  It  is  an  important  matter  and  cannot 
have  too  much  attention  on  the  part  of  exporters.  Pack- 
ages should  be  very  firmly  nailed  and  bound  by  band  iron, 
so  they  would  be  difficult  to  open,  as  there  is  much  com- 
plaint about  goods  being  stolen  from  boxes  in  transit.  I 
have  had  several  compliments  of  late  from  the  custom 
officers  for  the  way  shipments  of  American  goods  have  come 
packed.  It  will  pay  exporters  to  pack  well  everything 


they  ship.  Dollars  spent  in  this  line  will  bring  hundreds 
in  profits.  This  is  especially  true  for  Central  American 
ports." 

Supplementary  to  the  above  was  a  report  from  Vice- 
Consul  General  Owen  in  which  these  observations  were 
made: 

' '  The  following  drygoods  of  American  manufacture  are 
becoming  quite  popular  here:  Brown  cotton,  all  grades; 
cotton  duck,  Lindale,  up  to  6  ounces;  light  domestics; 
long  cloth;  gingham;  cotton  drill,  checks  and  stripes 
(cheviot) ;  blue  and  brown  cotton  drill ;  fancy  calicoes  and 
lawns;  cotton  ware,  all  colors.  The  piece  of  24  yards  is 
the  most  popular,  although  cotton  cheviots',  gingham,  etc., 
come  put  up  in  larger  pieces.  Dress  patterns  in  lawn  and 
calico  are  frequently  imported. 

"It  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  importers  of  this 
Republic  are  for  the  greater  part  Germans,  and  their 
interest  and  inclination  lead  them  to  trade  with  the  father- 
land. England  also  is  preferred  over  the  United  States, 
possibly  because  Guatemala  merchants  can  more  easily 
identify  themselves  in  England  and  get  better  credits. 
American  goods  therefore  are  imported  only  when  their 
quality  places  them  so  far  ahead  of  the  European  article  that 
the  merchant  is  almost  compelled  to  have  them  in  stock. 
The  American  manufacturers  should  become  better  ac- 
quainted with  this  trade,  ascertain  who  are  worthy  of  credit, 
and  extend  it.  The  long  voyage  and  delay  en  route  compel 
the  importer  to  ask  long  credits.  It  is  sometimes  two  or 
three  months  after  shipments  destined  for  this  city  leave 
the  manufacturer  before  they  can  be  displayed  in  the 
store  of  the  importer.  The  custom  duty  on  about  all  cotton 
goods  is  collected  on  gross  weight  of  the  package.  Great 
care  should  be  taken  with  invoices  for  custom-house  pur- 
poses; the  goods  must  be  described  in  exact  phraseology 
of  Guatemala  custom  tariff." 


CHAPTER  V. 
CUMATE  AND  IMMIGRATION. 


The  population  of  Guatemala  according  to  the  general 
census  of  the  Republic  taken  at  the  beginning  of  1904  was 
1,842,000.  This  was  the  actual  enumeration, but  as  there 
were  many  cases  in  which  a  complete  account  was  not 
possible  the  inhabitants  probably  number  2,000,000.  Of 
those  enumerated  by  races  750,615  were  Ladinos,  and 
1,091,519  were  of  the  aboriginal  race.  The  Ladinos  are 
the  descendants  of  the  white  race  and  of  a  mixture  of 
European  and  Indian.  The  Indian  population  is  princi- 
pally engaged  in  farming  and  in  small  commercial  enter- 
prises in  the  interior.  The  Ladinos  are  much  more  ener- 
getic. The  natives  of  the  high  and  cold  regions  are  the 
most  vigorous. 

For  many  years  it  has  been  the  aim  of  the  Guatemalan 
government  to  attract  foreign  immigration.  Under  Presi- 
dent Estrada  Cabrera's  administration  systematic  measures 
for  this  purpose  have  been  taken  and  the  policy  of  encouraging 
immigrants  and  colonists,  especially  from  the  United  States, 
has  become  a  settled  one.  Practically  one-half  the  fertile 
territory  is  yet  uncultivated  for  want  of  tenants  and  there 
are  many  agricultural  industries  which  require  a  very 
small  amount  of  capital  while  they  assure  independence  to 
those  who  follow  them. 

The  first  question  asked  is  whether  the  natives  of  the 
temperate  regions,  Europeans  and  North  Americans,  can 
live  and  work  in  the  climate.  The  answer  is  that  there  are 
large  areas  suitable  for  them  where  they  may  engage  in 
coffee-growing,  dairying,  stock-raising  and  similar  occu- 
pations. 

The  districts  known  as  the  Highlands  or  "Los  Altos" 
are  at  an  average  elevation  of  5,000  feet  and  comprise  some 
of  the  most  inviting  sections  of  Guatemala.  The  uplands 


include    Quezaltenango,    Solola,    Quiche,    Huehuetenango, 
Totonicapam,  and  San  Marcos. 

THE  THREE  ZONES. 

Usually  in  describing  the  country  it  is  divided  into  three 
zones.  The  tier r a  caliente,  or  hot  lands,  comprise  the 
coast  of  the  Atlantic  and  the  Pacific  ocean. 

The  tier  r  a  templada,  or  temperate  zone,  covers  the 
central  plains  which  range  from  2,000  to  5,000  feet  above 
the  sea  level. 

The  tier  r  a  fria,  or  cold  zone,  comprises  the  highlands  as 
noted  above. 

The  year  is  divided  into  two  seasons,  the  winter  or  rainy 
season  lasting  from  May  till  October,  and  the  dry  season. 
The  hottest  months  are  March  and  April  and  the  coldest 
ones  December  and  January.  Except  along  the  coast  the 
average  temperature  throughout  the  year  is  about  7 2°  Fah- 
renheit. The  climate  on  the  coast  is  rendered  endurable 
by  the  refreshing  sea  breezes  which  blow  for  several  hours 
every  day.  Many  people  who  live  in  the  uplands  in  the 
rarefied  atmosphere  find  it  agreeable  and  beneficial  to  their 
health  to  spend  a  few  weeks  every  season  on  the  coast 
lands.  The  climate  would  be  hot  and  moist  except  for  the 
variations  caused  by  the  mountains  which  oppose  them- 
selves not  only  to  the  prevailing  winds  but  also  in  rain- 
falls to  the  humidity  of  the  air.  The  winds  are  from  the 
east  and  north,  although  along  the  Pacific  coast  there  are 
southern  and  southwestern  winds  at  certain  times  in  the 
year.  In  regard  to  rainfall  the  general  rule  is  that  the 
regions  confronting  the  moist  winds  from  the  ocean  have 
abundant  precipitation  while  those  defended  by  mountain 
ranges  from  the  sea  winds  are  dry. 

The  climate  taking  the  country  as  a  whole  is  an  unusually 
healthy  one.  Fevers  are  not  common  and  when  they  exist 
are  confined  to  the  warm  and  humid  coast  regions.  No 
peculiar  climatic  disease  exists  in  Guatemala  and  the 
country  rarely  suffers  from  epidemics.  This  is  largely  due 
to  the  strict  sanitary  measures  which  are  enforced  by  the 
government. 


A  POETICAL  AND  PRACTICAL  DESCRIPTION. 

The  following  account  of  the  climate  in  popular  language 
is  given  .by  a  well-known  authority : 

"The  territory  of  the  Republic  belongs  to  the  torrid 
zone  comprised  among  the  intertropical  countries  which 
are  exempt  from  the  rigorous  winters  of  the  countries  of 
Europe,  North  and  South  America,  and  the  Far  East.  The 
vegetation  which  droops  in  the  dry  season  recovers  a  mar- 
velous exuberance  in  the  season  of  the  rains.  In  every 
part  it  is  encountered  then  rehabited  in  the  most  splendid 
garb  of  nature.  The  tropical  countries  at  this  period  cer- 
tainly are  the  motherland  of  all  the  plants  which  are  culti- 
vated throughout  the  world  when  as  in  the  case  of  our 
Republic  there  are  hot,  temperate  and  cold  zones  in  which 
the  vegetation  is  perpetual  and  flourishes  in  the  regions 
which  possess  perennial  springs  of  flowing  water  to  moisten 
the  cultivated  lands  in  the  season  of  the  drouths. 

"The  knowledge  of  the  climates  is  of  the  highest  impor- 
tance for  the  agriculturist.  It  is  his  guide  in  the  experi- 
ments for  acclimatizing  exotic  plants  which  he  seeks  to 
introduce  into  his  properties. 

"The  climate  of  a  locality  varies  through  the  background 
of  the  mountains,  through  its  sloping  direction,  its  nearness 
to  the  sea,  to  the  lakes,  and  to  the  selvas;  through  the  direc- 
tion and  the  forces  of  the  periodical  winds. 

"Setting  out  from  the  low  coastlands  and  ascending  to 
the  regions  of  the  Altos  or  highlands,  the  naturalist  admires 
successively  the  exuberant  vegetation  of  the  tropics  and 
that  of  the  cold  countries. 

"On  account  of  the  topography  of  the  territory  we  have 
in  the  different  zones  of  the  Republic  different  climates 
characterized  by  our  two  seasons — that  of  the  rains,  our 
winter,  and  that  of  the  dryness,  our  summer;  characterized 
too  by  the  intensity  of  the  heat  in  the  low  zones  of  the 
coasts  and  by  the  crisp  cold  in  the  high  plateaus  of  our 
mountains;  by  the  force  and  duration  of  the  periodic 
winds  of  the  Northwest  which  in  certain  regions  of  the  Re- 
public blow  with  a  violence  harmful  to  agriculture. 


59 

"The  temperature  in  the  low  zones  fluctuates  between 
26°  and  35°  centigrade,  averaging  28°.  In  the  zones  rang- 
ing from  3,000  to  5,000  feet  above  sea  level  the  temperature 
fluctuates  between  16°  and  24°,  the  average  being  20°  to 
22°  centigrade.  In  the  high  zones  or  cold  lands  the  tem- 
perature varies  from  8°  to  15°,  the  medium  being  12°  or 
13°.  In  these  zones  from  December  to  the  end  of  March 
the  temperature  drops  during  the  night  to  i°  centigrade 
and  other  times  to  3°  or  4°. 

"The  rains  commence  in  May  or  June  and  continue  until 
the  middle  of  November.  They  are  most  violent  from  July 
to  October.  In  the  months  of  September  and  October 
there  are  sometimes  storms  and  copious  rains  which  last 
almost  continuously  from  one  to  two  weeks. 

"Heavy  dews  are  numerous  and  at  times  very  copious 
in  the  summer  in  the  low  zones  close  to  the  sea,  the  lakes 
and  the  big  marshes  and  also  in  the  higher  zones  through 
the  condensation  of  the  vapors  which  absorb  the  sun's 
rays  and  become  more  condensed  on  reaching  the  colder 
regions  of  the  atmosphere. 

"The  northeast  winds  are  periodical  and  blow  almost 
without  interruption  throughout  the'  summer  and  with 
great  violence  on  the  coasts  of  the  north  and  in  the  eastern 
sections  of  the  country.  The  winds  on  the  south  coast  are 
much  milder  and  those  in  the  western  sections  are  insig- 
nificant. 

"Under  this  drouthlike  action  the  vegetation  withers  in 
the  hot  and  dry  zones.  It  flourishes  most  in  the  districts 
which  possess  perennial  springs  of  running  water  for 
fertilizing. 

' '  In  the  season  of  the  rains  there  are  strong  hurricanes 
of  southern  winds  which  cause  damage  to  agriculture,  but 
happily  they  are  not  frequent. 

"From  the  description  of  the  varied  climates  of  the 
Republic  it  will  be  seen  that  they  are  adapted  to  the  culti- 
vation of  the  richest  tropical  plants  and  for  all  the  agricul- 
tural and  industrial  produce  which  is  cultivated  in  the  cold 
and  temperate  zones  of  the  entire  world. 


6o 

"Besides,  its  vegetative  season  is  one  of  perpetual  culti- 
vation, and  in  the  plantations  which  possess  water  for 
irrigating  the  cultivated  lands  three  crops  a  year  can  be 
raised  in  the  hot  zones  as  well  as  the  temperate  regions, 
and  two  crops  of  the  cereals,  wheat  and  Indian  corn,  in  the 
cold  regions;  that  is  to  say,  the  feeding  of  30,000,000 
inhabitants  is  possible  besides  fruits  for  a  very  extensive 
exportation." 

AIDS  TO  AGRieui/ruRE. 

In  a  country  so  largely  agricultural  as  Guatemala  is  the 
measures  for  the  encouragement  of  farming  may  be  taken 
as  a  means  of  judging  the  interest  shown  by  the  govern- 
ment. On  this  point  President  Estrada  Cabrera  in  a  recent 
message  said: 

"  Agriculture  as  the  prime  factor  of  our  richness  has 
been  the  object  of  special  attention  during  the  last  seven 
years  of  my  administration.  In  order  to  broaden  and 
improve  it  there  has  been  established  in  the  capital  the 
General  Department  of  Agriculture  and  in  the  districts  and 
municipalities  Boards  for  the  same  purpose.  This  Depart- 
ment has  been  authorized  to  publish  a  periodical  The 
Bulletin  of  Agriculture  which  is  given  over  exclusively  to 
important  farming  studies.  Seeds  and  plants  have  been 
brought  from  other  countries  and  distributed  among  our 
farmers  in  order  to  establish  new  sources  of  production. 
Strict  orders  have  been  issued  to  secure  the  cultivation  of 
the  largest  areas  possible  and  also  for  establishing  common 
seed  grounds.  Regulations  have  been  made  for  the  exploi- 
tation of  rubber.  In  every  possible  manner  the  importa- 
tion of  farm  tools  and  agricultural  machinery  has  been 
facilitated.  Contracts  have  been  made  for  the  exploitation 
of  the  woods  in  the  forests  of  the  north.  Schools  of  agricul- 
ture have  been  created  in  order  to  further  the  study  of 
these  subjects  by  the  issue  of  special  bulletins  under  the 
direction  of  the  Department  of  Agriculture." 


OF 


^ 

(  UN/VE 


61 


LEADING  POINTS  OF  IMMIGRATION  LAW. 

A  general  immigration  law  was  passed  several  years  ago 
which  has  been  supplemented  by  other  laws  since  that 
time.  At  the  outset  immigration  contracts  with  the  Chinese 
are  prohibited  and  the  latter  are  not  to  be  accepted  as 
immigrants.  The  purpose  of  this  is  to  insure  white  immi- 
gration and  to  prevent  cheap  coolie  labor  of  a  temporary 
character  interfering  with  settlers  who  wish  to  establish 
themselves  permanently.  Immigrants  are  described  as 
those  foreigners  having  a  profession,  occupation  or  trade, 
whether  day  laborers,  artisans,  workingmen  in  factories, 
farmers  or  professors,  who  give  up  their  own  homes  to  come 
and  settle  in  Guatemala  and  accept  their  transportation  to 
be  paid  either  by  the  Guatemalan  government  or  by  an 
immigration  company.  Immigrants  also  include  the  for- 
eigners whose  transportation  is  not  paid  by  the  government 
or  by  private  companies.  The  wearing  apparel  and  house- 
hold furniture,  tools,  domestic  animals  and  other  posses- 
sions of  immigrants  are  entered  at  the  custom-house  free 
of  duty. 

An  important  provision  authorizes  the  government  to 
grant  gratuitously  to  immigrants  lots  of  public  lands  in 
certain  districts  provided  that  the  immigrants  bind  them- 
selves to  cultivate  within  two  years  the  third  part  of  the 
land  granted.  For  this  purpose  zones  of  tillable  land  are 
set  apart  in  the  districts  named. 

Immigrants  are  exempted  for  a  period  of  four  years 
after  their  arrival  from  service  in  the  construction  or 
repair  of  the  public  roads  and  from  the  payment  of  munici- 
pal taxes.  They  are  also  exempted  from  military  service 
except  in  the  case  of  foreign  war.  They  enjoy  all  the 
rights  and  privileges  granted  by  law  to  Guatemalan  citizens. 

PUBLIC  LANDS  FOR  SETTLERS. 

Under  a  general  law  a  body  of  official  engineers  was 
created  for  surveying  and  distributing  the  uncultivated 
public  lands  and  fixing  the  prices  therefor.  The  price 


62 

varies  according  to  the  nature  of  the  land,  whether  it  is 
for  grazing,  raising  cereals;  whether  capable  of  raising 
sugar,  banana,  etc. ;  whether  adapted  to  coffee  and  cotton, 
or  whether  it  contains  forests.  Public  lands  may  also  be 
granted  to  immigrants  gratuitously.  Information  on  these 
points  can  be  had  through  correspondence  with  the  Depart- 
ment of  Agriculture  called  "Direccion  General  de  Agricul- 
tura,"  in  Guatemala  City. 

President  Estrada  Cabrera's  land  policy  has  been  directed 
especially  to  prevent  great  areas  from  being  kept  out  of 
cultivation.  He  has  dictated  many  measures  with  the 
purpose  of  breaking  up  the  huge  estates  that  often  are 
uncultivated  for  want  of  capital  and  making  them  produc- 
tive through  the  encouragement  of  small  capitalists  or 
farmers. 

The  general  system  of  highways  and  cart  roads  as  well 
as  of  the  railroads  has  been  devised  for  this  purpose. 

With  regard  to  colonization  and  immigration  the  policy 
of  securing  the  benefit  of  the  favored  soil  to  settlers  has 
been  indicated  in  the  correspondence  with  various  com- 
panies and  individuals.  In  a  report  by  the  Director  of 
Agriculture  he  declared  that  immigration  from  North 
America  would  be  very  pleasing  to  Guatemala  and  would 
strengthen  the  cordial  relations  existing  between  the  two 
countries.  That  the  immigrants  will  be  well  received  he 
was  assured.  Their  practical  character  would  be  especially 
valuable  in  developing  the  resources  of  the  country.  The 
Director,  however,  called  attention  to  the  fact  that  in  many 
places  of  the  country  the  geological  conditions  were  not 
similar  to  the  prairies  of  the  United  States  where  in  the 
beginning  very  much  could  be  accomplished  on  a  large 
scale  by  machinery.  In  many  of  the  districts  open  to 
settlement  in  Guatemala  much  of  the  work  of  clearing  would 
have  to  be  done  by  hand.  That  is  one  reason  why  encour- 
agement is  given  to  the  individual  settlers  instead  of  to 
companies. 

To  broaden  and  strengthen  the  present  immigration  law 
the  Department  of  Agriculture  has  recommended  that 


63 

certain  lands  be  thrown  open  to  settlement  on  the  following 
conditions : 

1 .  The  government  shall  make  the  plan  for  the  colony 
dividing  the  lands  into  lots  of  one  caballeria  (112  acres). 

2.  The  settler    shall    take  immediate  possession  of  the 
lot  which  is  granted  him. 

3.  The  government  shall  aid  the  removal  of  the  colonists 
from  their  present  place  of  residence  to  the  point  where 
they  intend  to  settle.     This  aid  to  be  extended  under  con- 
ditions which  will  insure  its  repayment. 

4.  The  colonists  on  taking  possession  of  their  land  shall 
obligate  themselves  to  begin  cultivating  some  of  the  fol- 
lowing  articles:  rice,    corn,    beans,    coffee,    cacao,  vanilla, 
rubber,  cotton,  hemp,  etc. 

5.  The    government    shall    designate    from    among    the 
colonists  some  one  who  shall  give  general  instruction  with 
regard  to  the  farming. 


CHAPTER  VI. 
INTERNATIONAL  RELATIONS. 


Friendly  relations  with  all  countries,  both  neighboring 
and  distant,  is  a  leading  point  in  President  Estrada  Cabrera's 
programme.  The  relations  of  Guatemala  with  the  United 
States  are  particularly  close  and  cordial. 

In  his  annual  message  President  Estrada  Cabrera  said: 

"It  is  well  known  that  the  grand  Republic  of  North 
America  always  has  shown  the  most  sympathetic  regard 
for  our  country  and  the  earnest  effort  of  my  government 
has  been  to  strengthen  the  ties  of  friendship  which  unite 
the  two  nations.  With  this  feeling  existing  there  has  been 
achieved  during  the  period  since  1898  the  most  flattering 
results,  so  that  it  can  be  confidently  stated  that  never 
before  have  the  relations  between  Guatemala  and  the  United 
States  reached  so  great  a  degree  of  cordiality  as  to-day,  and 
it  may  be  said  that  never  has  any  cause  of  discord  between 
the  two  governments  been  so  remote  as  now.  The  death 
of  the  illustrious  President  McKinley,  which  was  felt  so 
deeply  in  Guatemala,  and  the  advent  into  the  Presidency 
of  Mr.  Roosevelt  in  no  way  interrupted  the  progress  of 
affairs  with  our  Republic  and  those  which  were  pending 
followed  their  tranquil  course  towards  a  satisfactory  arrange- 
ment." 

The  Secretary  of  Foreign  Relations  in  his  annual  report 
said: 

' '  Motives  analogous  to  those  which  in  foreign  govern- 
ments have  caused  congratulation  over  the  re-election  of 
Sefior  Estrada  Cabrera  as  President  of  Guatemala  have 
made  it  pleasing  ttat  the  government  of  this  Republic  on 
its  part  could  extend  its  congratulations  over  the  re-election 
in  the  United  States  and  Mexico  respectively  of  Messrs. 


65 

Roosevelt  and  Diaz,  two  eminent  statesmen  whose  concilia- 
tory policies  are  well  known,  as  likewise  their  sympathetic 
regard  for  Guatemala.  The  continuation  of  these  illustrious 
personages  in  power  is  considered  by  this  government  as  a 
guaranty  of  the  increasing  cordiality  of  the  relations  of 
Guatemala  with  them  and  it  has  also  enabled  at  the  same 
time  to  be  placed  in  evidence  with  all  sincerity  the  satis- 
faction which  has  been  produced  by  their  re-election  in 
their  respective  countries." 

These  are  correct  statements,  for  the  sentiment  of  pro- 
found sympathy  and  admiration  which  President  Estrada 
Cabrera  and  the  whole  people  of  Guatemala  entertain  for 
President  Roosevelt  and  for  the  American  people  are  very 
marked.  For  President  Roosevelt  on  account  of  his  grand 
traits  of  character,  of  mentality  and  of  heart  and  the 
spirit  of  humanity,  justice  and  rectitude  which  make  of 
him  the  chief  magistrate  most  conspicuous,  most  respected, 
most  popular  and  most  cherished  of  the  present  day;  and 
for  the  American  people  on  account  of  their  intelligence, 
their  enterprising  disposition  and  their  unceasing  labors 
for  progress,  which  have  gained  for  them  so  pre-eminent  a 
place  among  all  the  nations  of  the  earth  as  one  of  the 
grandest,  most  flourishing  and  most  powerful. 

ADHERENCE  TO  THE  HAGUE  PEACE  PRINCIPLES. 

These  quotations  indicate  the  sentiment  of  Guatemala 
towards  the  two  countries  with  which  geographically  and 
otherwise  it  is  most  closely  allied.  Further  evidence  of 
the  friendship  for  the  United  States  and  of  the  desire  to 
sustain  its  policies  of  international  peace  were  afforded  in 
the  promptness  with  which  President  Roosevelt's  sugges- 
tion of  a  second  Peace  Conference  in  The  Hague  was  ac- 
cepted. With  regard  to  the  United  States  the  Secretary 
of  Foreign  Affairs  stated: 

' '  Knowing  the  importance  of  our  relations  with  the  great 
American  nation  it  was  a  grateful  duty  to  send  a  special 
mission  to  Washington  with  the  sole  object  of  congratulat- 


66 

ing  President  Roosevelt.  For  the  discharge  of  this  function 
SsnDr  Jorge  Munoz  was  selected  and  he  discharged  it  with 
entire  satisfaction  to  the  government.  This  mission  having 
been  disposed  of  he  was  accredited  permanently  as  Envoy 
Extraordinary  and  Minister  Plenipotentiary. 

"Inasmuch  as  it  was  not  one  of  the  ancient  nations  of 
Europe,  but  a  young  and  virile  Republic,  the  strongest  in 
America,  which  launched  the  project  through  its  distin- 
guished President  of  a  second  Hague  Conference  to  perfect 
and  complete  the  works  of  the  first  one  in  favor  of  universal 
peace,  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  this  effort  will  be  seconded 
by  all  /the  countries  of  the  civilized  world  and  that  at  no 
distant  time  when  experience  shall  have  shown  the  defi- 
ciencies in  the  conclusions  adopted  by  previous  Congresses 
those  which  may  be  adopted  in  the  coming  Peace  Conference 
will  be  more  efficacious  for  the  success  of  the  humanitarian 
and  praiseworthy  end  which  the  United  States  proposes." 
'  Guatemala  previously  had  given  its  adhesion  to  the 
principles  of  arbitration  promulgated  under  The  Hague 
Convention.  It  was  represented  in  the  Second  International 
American  Conference  held  in  Mexico  1901-1902,  and  the 
various  treaties  and  recommendations  made  by  that  Con- 
ference were  ratified  or  endorsed  as  in  the  case  of  the 
other  signatory  governments.  The  action  taken  by  the 
government  of  Guatemala  on  the  respective  conventions 
and  recommendations  was  officially  transmitted  to  Senor 
Mariscal,  Secretary  of  Foreign  Relations  of  Mexico,  in 
accordance  with  the  resolution  of  the  Conference. 

PECUNIARY  CLAIMS  ARBITRATION. 

Among  the  treaties  promulgated  by  the  Pan-American 
Conference  in  Mexico  was  one  relating  to  pecuniary  claims. 
This  required  the  ratification  of  five  governments  in  order 
to  make  it  effective.  Guatemala  was  one  of  the  first  to 
give  its  formal  adhesion  to  this  convention.  This  treaty 
was  ratified  by  the  United  States  Senate  and  promulgated 
by  the  Department  of  State  from  Washington  in  the 
spring  of  1905,  so  that  United  States  citizens  can  now  claim 


67 

its  benefits.  The  treaty  consists  of  five  articles.  Under 
its  terms  the  high  contracting  parties  agree  to  submit  to 
arbitration,  through  the  Hague  Court,  all  claims  for  pecu- 
niary loss  or  damage  which  may  be  presented  by  their 
respective  citizens  and  which  cannot  be  amicably  adjusted 
through  diplomatic  channels  and  when  such  claims  are  of 
sufficient  importance  to  warrant  the  expenses  of  arbitration. 

By  virtue  of  Article  26  of  the  convention  of  The  Hague 
the  high  contracting  parties  agree  to  submit  to  the  decision 
of  the  Permanent  Court  of  Arbitration  established  by  that 
convention  all  controversies  which  are  the  subject-matter 
of  the  Treaty  unless  both  parties  should  prefer  that  especial 
jurisdiction  be  organized  according  to  Article  21. 

If  for  any  cause  the  Permanent  Court  of  The  Hague  should 
not  be  opened  to  one  or  more  of  the  high  contracting  parties 
they  obligate  themselves  to  stipulate  in  a  special  treaty 
the  rules  under  which  the  tribunal  shall  be  established  as 
well  as  its  forms  of  procedure. 

In  1 902  the  administration  of  President  Estrada  Cabrera 
negotiated  and  the  National  Assembly  ratified  an  agree- 
ment with  Germany,  Belgium,  France,  England,  and  Italy, 
which  disposed  of  many  subjects  that  had  been  in  con- 
troversy. 

Spain,  the  United  States  and  Mexico  did  not  enter  into 
the  agreement  because  those  governments  preferred  to 
postpone  the  claims  of  their  citizens  until  the  industrial 
crisis  was  over  and  the  financial  conditions  were  improved. 
Since  that  time  a  number  of  claims  have  been  adjusted 
satisfactorily.  President  Estrada  Cabrera  stated  in  a 
recent  message  that  there  were  no  claims  at  the  present 
time  which  were  weighing  upon  the  national  treasury. 
These  matters  having  been  arranged  satisfactorily  he  said 
that  no  subject  had  arisen  which  could  alter  the  friendly 
relations  with  the  countries  of  Europe.  This  friendship 
was  shown  in  the  tribute  paid  by  the  Diplomatic  Corps  on 
New  Year's  day.  Subsequently  the  governments  of  Ger- 
many and  France  had  shown  especial  consideration  by 
conferring  on  the  President  the  Order  of  the  Red  Eagle 
and  of  the  Legion  of  Honor,  respectively. 


68 

With  Mexico  the  relations  of  Guatemala  have  been 
cordial  since  the  boundary  dispute  was  settled  in  1895. 
Recently  the  commercial  relations,  on  account  of  the  con- 
struction of  the  Pan-American  Railway  through  Mexican 
territory  to  the  Guatemalan  border  have  required  the 
establishment  of  various  consulates  in  important  places  in 
Mexico,  and  the  exequaturs  have  been  granted  by  the 
Mexican  government. 

CONCORD  IN  CENTRAL  AMERICA. 

With  respect  to  the  neighboring  republics  of  Central 
America  the  attitude  of  Guatemala  has  been  open  and 
pronounced.  It  desires  to  destroy  every  cause  of  discord 
among  the  Republics  and  to  maintain  a  perfect  equilibrium. 
Guatemala  took  part  in  the  conference  which  was  held  at 
Corinto,  Nicaragua,  in  August,  1904,  and  at  which  Salvador, 
Honduras  and  Nicaragua  also  were  represented.  Through 
its  delegate  President  Estrada  Cabrera's  government  sub- 
scribed to  the  following  declarations: 

1 .  To  maintain  peace  is  the  principal  objective  of  our 
government,  not  only  because  it  is  a  necessity  for  the  various 
peoples,  but  also  because  it  imposes  itself  as  a  duty  which 
all  Spanish  American  nationalities  should  fulfil.     For  this 
reason  we  firmly  believe  in  the  proposition  to  overcome 
in  Central  America  every  obstacle  that  may  stand  in  the 
way  of  peace  and  we  will  put  forth  our  strongest  efforts 
to  frustrate  the  schemes  of  those  who  seek  to  sow  distrust 
and  jealousy  among  us  impelled  as  they  are  by  the  spirit 
of  ambition  or  disorder. 

2.  The  strict  compliance  with  the  international  compacts 
which  bind  us  shall  be  the  test  to  which  we  submit  our  acts 
so  that  every  effort  to  the  contrary  will  be  vain  and  barren 
since  it  is  necessary  to  recognize  that  the  generality  of 
the  labors  of  the  enemies  of  each  administration  tend  to 
no  laudable  ends  but  rather  are  the  work  of  selfish  egotists, 
of    personal    enmities    or    the    aberration    of    unbalanced 
judgment. 


69 

3.  We  do  not  hesitate  then  in  declaring  that  whatever 
scheme  of  discord,  subversive  attempt,  or  suggestion  which 
proposes  to  break  our  loyal  friendship   shall  receive  no 
support  among  us  because   the   sincerity   and  firmness  of 
our  relations  as  representatives  of  the  peoples  whom  we 
serve  are  and  always  will  be  affirmed  in  this  solemn  agree- 
ment, which  we  make  at  the  instance  of  Central  America; 
an  agreement  which  is  the  fruit  of  the  efforts  we  have  made 
as  public  men  on  different  occasions. 

4.  We  expect  that  all  good  citizens  will  give  us  in  the 
sense   indicated   their    patriotic    co-operation   inspired   in 
ideals  of  peace  and  fraternity  and  contributing  by  support- 
ing us  in  this  accord  to  place  an  end  to  the  discord  which 
the  enemies  of  the  public  tranquillity  cause.     And  also 
upholding  the  liberal  and  progressive  policy  which  governs 
our  acts. 


CHAPTER  VII. 
THE  LAND  OF  TRAVEL  AND  HISTORY. 


Guatemala  is  a  fascinating  country  for  the  traveler  and 
visitor.  Antiquarians,  deep  delvers  in  the  majestic  monu- 
ments of  the  long  forgotten  past,  seek  in  the  myths,  the  tradi- 
tions, the  temples  and  the  ruins  the  riddles  of  prehistoric 
civilization.  Modern  tourists  traveling  as  they  will  be 
able  to  do  within  a  short  time  by  railway  from  New  York 
or  San  Francisco  to  the  very  heart  of  Guatemala  may  lose 
themselves  in  admiration  of  the  sublime  scenery,  the 
lovely  landscapes  of  valley  and  mountain  lake  and  forest 
(the  Indian  name  for  Guatemala  means  abounding  in  trees) , 
volcanic  caps,  giant  outlines,  and  cloud-clad  craters. 
Everywhere  they  will  encounter  that  diversity  which  is 
the  chief  attraction  of  natural  scenery.  They  will  find 
also  superimposed  on  the  prehistoric  Indian  civilization  the 
charm  of  Spanish  architecture,  customs,  character  and  insti- 
tutions. 

Men  of  the  stamp  of  President  Estrada  Cabrera  who  are  en- 
gaged in  the  material  upbuilding  and  the  political  progress  of 
the  country  may  prefer  to  talk  of  its  agriculture  and  com- 
merce, its  opportunities  for  the  energetic  and  resourceful 
people  of  the  northern  regions  rather  than  to  discuss  its  pic- 
turesque ruins  and  its  fascinating  history.  Yet  they  would 
not  have  these  subjects  neglected.  Hence  the  traveler  and 
the  tourist  always  are  welcome,  and  whether  they  be  deeply 
learned  scientific  investigators  or  mere  birds  of  passage 
seeking  novelty  every  provision  is  made  to  aid  them  in 
their  travels.  ^ 

NATURE'S  BOLD  HAND. 

>* 

In  the  very  accurate  and  complete  physiographic  descrip- 
tion of  Guatemala  contained  in  the  report  of  the  Inter- 


continental  Railway  Survey  the  following  description  is 
given  of  the  great  chain  of  volcanic  cones  and  peaks  which 
add  so  greatlv  to  the  bold  picturesqueness  of  the  country. 

"The  Pacific  coast  extends  generally  from  the  northwest 
to  the  southeast.  From  the  sea  the  ground  rises  with  a 
very  gentle  slope  inland  for  almost  25  or  30  miles  when  the 
country  becomes  broken  by  the  lava  foothills  of  the  vol- 
canoes which  extend  from  one  end  of  the  country  to  the 
other  and  which  stand  like  a  giant  wall  between  the  coast 
and  the  interior.  Beginning  at  the  Mexican  boundary  the 
line  of  volcanoes  extends  nearly  parallel  to  the  coast. 
Back  of  this  is  a  plateau  limited  on  the  other  side  by  the 
Continental  Divide  and  much  broken  by  spurs  which  unite 
the  volcanoes  with  the  Divide  and  the  deep  valleys  between 
the  spurs.  The  plateau  is  drained  by  rivers  which  run  to 
the  sea  through  the  deep  canyons  between  the  volcanoes. 
The  Continental  Divide  begins  with  the  volcano  Tacana 
and  making  a  semicircular  bend  to  the  north  and  east 
rises  again  in  the  volcano  Tajumulco.  From  this  point 
its  general  direction  is  easterly  as  far  ar  the  Cerro  Tecpan. 
Tacana  and  Tajumulco  are  the  highest  points  on  this  are 
being  respectively  13,334  an<i  !3>8i4  feet  above  sea  level. 
From  Tajumulco  to  near  To tonicapam  the  general  altitude 
of  the  Divide  is  about  9,000  feet,  the  most  prominent  peaks 
being  the  Cerro  Cerchil  11,830  feet,  and  the  Cerro  Calel 
10,813  feet.  From  Totonicapam  to  Cerro  Tecpam  the 
general  elevation  of  the  Divide  is  about  10,500  feet  with  one 
peak,  the  Cerro  Quiche  of  11,160  feet.  From  Cerro  Tecpam 
10,050  feet,  the  Divide  turns  to  the  southeast  and  drops  to 
a  general  elevation  of  about  7,000  feet,  crossing  the  plateau 
and  rising  again  in  the  Cerro  Santa  Maria  Cauque.  Fol- 
lowing the  hills  of  Mexico,  it  crosses  the  plain  near  Guate- 
mala City,  the  suburb  of  Guarda  Viejo,  5,060  feet,  being 
on  the  Divide." 

•  -  The  heights  of  other  principal  volcanoes  are  given  opposite 


3  'Acatenango  i3>012 

Fuego '. 12,821 

j"  /Agua 1 2 ,300 

Atitlan 1 1 ,849 

t  Santa  Maria 10,535 

Quezaltenango 9,358 

Pacaya 7,675 

Ipala 6,801 

Chingo 6,019 

VARIETY  IN  GEOLOGIC AL  STRUCTURE. 

In  the  geological  structure  of  the  country  unusual  variety 
of  character  is  shown.  The  quart ernary  formation,  aluvium 
and  diluvium,  covers  the  greater  portion  of  the  Pacific 
coast  from  the  foot  of  the  mountains  to  the  sea.  The 
same  formation  is  also  observed  in  the  neighborhood  of 
Guatemala  City,  the  valley  of  the  Passion  River,  Puerto 
Barrios  and  various  other  localities  on  the  Atlantic  Slope. 

The  tertiary  formation  and  particularly  limestone  covers 
the  entire  Department  of  Peten.  Futhermore,  limestones 
and  dolomites  of  the  upper  cretaceous  age  are  noted  from 
La  Libertad  toward  the  Usumacinta  River  and  toward 
British  Honduras.  In  the  localities  of  San  Luis  and  Santa 
Barbara  there  are  tertiary  limestones  and  sandstones  of 
Eocene  and  miocene  ages. 

The  limestones  and  dolomites  of  the  upper  cretaceous 
age  are  also  found  in  various  localities  mixed  with  tertiary 
limestone  and  sandstone  as  well  as  conglomerates,  dolomites, 
and  limestones  of  the  lower  cretaceous  age.  In  other  sec- 
tions they  are  mixed  with  limestones  and  dolomites  of  the 
upper  carboniferous  age  mingled  with  slate,  sandstone  and 
pudding  stone.  The  latter  formation  is  found  in  other 
sections  with  precarboniferous  limestone  and  also  with 
crystalline  limestone  of  the  azoic  age. 

The  tertiary  formation  is  followed  by  an  azoic  formation 
of  gneiss,  mica  slate,  and  phylada  with  large  intrusions 
of  granite.  A  kind  of  horn-blend  slate  has  been  observed 
in  some  parts  of  Izabal. 


73 

The  eruptive  formations  are  composed  of  porphyry  in 
the  north  and  northwest;  of  diorite,  obsidian,  rhyolite, 
and  dacite  and  of  trachyte,  together  with  basalt,  rhyolite, 
obsidian  and  granite  in  other  sections.  The  eruptive  for- 
mations are  further  composed  of  basalt  in  Pacaya  and 
several  other  volcanoes ;  and  mostly  of  ambesite  in  the  rest 
of  the  Cordilleras  and  the  highlands. 

For  the  present-day  traveley  who  is  interested  in  earth- 
quakes and  their  effects  and  in  the  ruins  of  Spanish  archi- 
tecture, nothing  more  entertaining  can  be  found  than  a 
visit  to  La  Antigua,  which  can  be  reached  from  Guatemala 
City  by  a  few  hours'  ride  in  carriage  or  on  horseback. 
Antigua  stretches  through  the  beautiful  and  fertile  valley 
which  in  the  Indian  language  means  dry  lake  because  the 
tradition  exists  that  in  prehistoric  times  there  was  a  fine 
sheet  of  water  covering  the  land.  The  panorama  which 
delights  the  eye  from  any  elevated  point  of  Antigua  is 
glorious.  The  three  volcanoes  of  Acatenango,  Agua  (water) 
and  Fuego  (fire)  lose  their  majestic  combs  in  the  clouds. 
In  every  direction  spread  fertile  fields  with  an  .infinite 
number  of  coffee  and  sugar  plantations  in  every  state  of 
production.  The  borders  of  the  city  are  bathed  by  two 
charming  rivers,  the  Pensativo  and  the  Portal.  In  the 
immediate  neighborhood  are  hygienic  baths  of  pure  crystal- 
line water. 

PREHISTORIC  RUINS  AND  FAMED  LAKE  ATITLAN. 

Many  volumes  have  been  written  about  the  prehistoric 
ruins  of  Guatemala  and  especially  of  Copan.  One  of  the 
most  recent  and  most  sumptuously  illustrated  is  that  by 
Anne  Cary  Maudslay  and  Alfred  Percival  Maudslay  entitled 
"A  Glimpse  at  Guatemala."  It  was  published  in  London. 
In  this  book  Professor  Maudslay  gives  the  following  descrip- 
tion of  a  visit  to  the  ruins  at  Quirigua: 

"The  ruins,  which  are  completely  hidden  in  a  thick  tropi- 
cal forest,  stand  about  three-quarters  of  a  mile  from  the 
left  bank  of  the  river  Motagua  and  about  five  miles  from 
the  miserable  little  village  of  Quirigua,  from  which  they 


74 

take  their  name.  They  consist  of  numerous  square  or 
oblong  mounds  and  terraces  varying  from  six  to  forty  feet 
in  height,  some  standing  by  themselves,  others  clustered 
in  irregular  groups.  Most  of  these  mounds  were  faced  with 
worked  stone  and  were  ascended  by  flights  of  stone  steps. 

"The  interest  centers  in  the  thirteen  large  carved  mono- 
liths which  are  arranged  irregularly  round  what  were  prob- 
ably the  most  important  plazas.  Six  of  these  monuments 
are  tall  stones  measuring  three  to  five  feet  square  and 
standing  fourteen  to  twenty  feet  out  of  the  ground.  The 
other  five  are  oblong  or  rounded  blocks  of  stone  shaped 
so  as  to  represent  huge  turtles  or  armadilloes  or  some  such 
animals.  All  these  monuments  are  covered  with  elaborate 
carving.  Usually  on  both  back  and  front  of  the  tall 
monoliths  there  is  carved  a  huge  human  figure  standing 
full  face  and  in  a  stiff  and  conventional  attitude.  The 
sides  of  the  monuments  are  covered  with  tables  of  hiero- 
glyphs, most  of  them  in  fairly  good  preservation.  In  addi- 
tion to  these  tables  of  hieroglyphs  there  are  series  of  square 
or  cartouches  of  what  appears  to  be  actual  picture  writing, 
each  division  measuring  about  eighteen  inches  square  and 
containing  usually  two  or  three  grotesque  figures  of  men 
and  animals.  The  design  of  these  picture  writings  shows 
considerable  variety  and  freedom  of  treatment  as  compared 
with  that  of  the  large  sizes  human  figures  in  the  execution 
of  which  the  artist  seems  to  have  been  bound  by  conven- 
tional rules. 

"The  largest  of  the  stone  animals  is  perhaps  the  most 
remarkable  of  all  the  monuments.  Its  measurement  is 
roughly  a  cube  of  eight  feet,  it  must  weigh  nearly  twenty 
tons  and  it  rests  on  three  large  slabs  of  stone.  It"  is  shaped 
like  a  turtle  and  is  covered  with  a  most  elaborate  and 
curious  ornament  and  with  tables  of  hieroglyphics  and  car- 
touches of  picture  writing.  The  greater  part  of  the  orna- 
ment throughout  these  carvings  is  formed  from  the  grotesque 
representations  of  the  human  face  or  the  faces  of  animals, 
the  features  frequently  so  greatly  exaggerated  that  it  is 
most  difficult  to  recognize  them,  but  a  careful  examination 
enables  one  almost  invariably  to  trace  back  to  this  facial 


75 

origin  what  at  first  sight  appears  to  be  merely  conventional 
scroll  work.  Forms  derived  from  leaves  or  flowers  are 
altogether  absent;  occasional  use  is  made  of  a  plaited 
ribbon  and  a  very  free  use  of  plumes  of  feathers  which  are 
oftenmost  gracefully  arranged  and  beautifully  carved. 
The  fifteen  monuments  are  divided  into  two  groups;  in 
one  the  figures  are  all  those  of  men,  in  the  other  of  women." 

The  same  authors  give  the  following  vivid  description 
of  the  famed  Lake  Atitlan: 

"Our  tent  was  pitched  so  close  to  the  precipice  that 
even  from  my  bed  I  had  a  grand  view  into  the  Lake  and 
could  watch  the  black  masses  of  the  volcanoes  looming 
clear-cut  and  solemn  in  the  moonlight  or  changing  from 
black  to  gray  in  the  early  dawn;  then  a  rosy  flush  would 
touch  the  peak  of  Atitlan  and  the  light  creep  down  its  side, 
revealing  for  a  brief  half  hour  every  detail  of  cinder  ridge 
and  chasm  on  its  scarred  and  wounded  slopes  until  with  a 
sudden  burst  of  glory  the  sun  rose  above  the  eastern  hills 
to  strike  the  mirror-like  surface  of  the  Lake  and  flood  the 
world  with  warmth  and  dazzling  light.  Every  peak  and 
mountain  ridge  now  stood  out  clear  and  sharp  against  the 
morning  sky,  and  only  in  the  shadow  of  the  hills  would  a 
fleecy  mist  hang  over  the  surface  of  the  lake  far  beneath 
us ;  then  almost  before  the  sun  had  power  to  drink  up  these 
lees  of  the  night  from  the  deep  gap  between  the  hills  to 
the  south,  a  finger  of  white  cloud,  borne  up  from  the  sea- 
ward slope,  would  creep  around  the  peak  of  Atitlan  only 
to  be  dissipated  in  the  cooler  air;  but  finger  followed  finger 
and  the  mysterious  hand  never  lost  its  grasp  until  about 
noon  great  billowy  clouds  rolled  up  through  the  gap  and 
the  outpost  was  fairly  captured  although  the  crater  itself 
often  stood  out  clear  above  the  cloudy  belt.  It  was  not, 
however,  until  the  sun  began  to  lose  its  power  that  the 
real  attack  commenced  and  the  second  column  deployed 
through  the  gap  on  the  southern  flank  of  San  Pedro  and 
then  from  five  o'clock  until  dark  there  followed  a  scene 
which  no  pen  and  no  brush  could  adequately  portray.  The 


76 

clouds  seemed  to  be  bewitched;  they  came  down  on  us  in 
alternate  black  and  sunlit  masses,  terrible  in  their  majesty; 
then  rolled  aside  to  show  us  all  the  beauty  of  a  sunset  sky, 
tints  of  violet  that  shaded  into  pink,  and  pink  that  melted 
into  the  clearest  blue,  whilst  far  away  beyond  the  mountain 
seaward  rolled  vast  billowy  masses,  first  red  and  yellow 
and  then  pink  fading  to  the  softest  green.  Again  and 
again  would  the  clouds  roll  down  upon  us,  the  mist  at  times 
so  thick  that  we  could  not  see  beyond  a  hundred  yards; 
then  just  as  quickly  it  would  roll  away  and  reveal  a  com- 
pletely new  phase  of  this  ever  shifting  scene  of  beauty. 
As  the  sun  sank  behind  San  Pedro  all  turned  again  to  dark 
and  angry  purple  with  contrasts  and  reflections  like  the 
sheen  of  a  shot  silk.  Slowly  the  mists  melted  away  with 
the  fading  daylight,  Venus  hung  for  a  while  like  a  splendid 
jewel  in  the  air  and  the  mountains  turned  again  to  shadowy 
masses  outlined  against  a  crystal  sky." 

FASCINATING   HISTORY  THROUGH  THE  CENTURIES. 

Historically  every  period  of  Guatemala  is  fascinating. 
Usually  the  history  of  the  country  is  divided  into  the  epochs 
of  the  aborigines,  the  Spanish  Conquest,  Independence, 
and  the  era  of  liberal  governments. 

Across  the  centuries  the  path  of  history  can  be  traced. 
A  book  written  in  the  1 6th  century  by  one  of  the  aborigines 
of  the  time  of  the  Conquest  and  called  "Popol-Vuh"  or 
"Book  of  the  People,"  speaks  of  the  Quiches,  vigorous  and 
hardy  natives  of  the  soil,  forerunners  of  the  Guatemalan 
people  as  having  reached  at  that  time  a  degree  of  advance 
which  singled  them  out  from  among  the  other  primitive 
inhabitants  of  America.  Their  religious  system  was  in 
essence  a  kind  of  animal  worship  whose  gods  were  personi- 
fied by  the  fox,  the  coyote,  and  the  wild  boar  to  be  soon 
reemployed  through  natural  evolution  by  the  forces  of 
nature  such  as  the  heavens,  the  earth,  and  the  sea.  They 
left  as  evidences  of  their  worship  the  multitude  of  monu- 
ments whose  imposing  ruins  are  preserved  today.  Pyra- 
mids which  seem  to  bear  traces  of  Egypt  and  characters 


77 

indicative  of  a  remote  Asiatic  origin;  temples,  such  as  the 
Temple  of  the  Sun,  of  grand  architecture;  and  the  Palace, 
dwelling  of  the  King,  a  holy  being  and  the  Supreme  Arbiter. 
The  latter  is  among  the  most  notable  of  American  antiqui- 
ties and  it  causes  admiration  through  the  graduated  pyra- 
mid, the  triangular  vault  and  the  arch  forming  an  harmo- 
nious whole.  The  Quiche  civilization  was  an  advanced  one 
and  its  government  was  a  theocracy  in  which  the  High 
Priest  was  both  the  Supreme  Governor  and  inherited  the 
name  of  the  primitive  god  Votan.  This  theocracy  was 
drawn  from  among  the  warriors  while  the  people  in  com- 
plete servitude  tilled  the  fields  in  order  to  sustain  the 
worship  and  raise  grand  monuments  and  built  numerous 
cities  on  the  borders  of  the  lakes  and  rivers. 

Agriculture  was  well  advanced.  Cacao  was  cultivated 
with  grand  ceremonies  and  maize  or  Indian  corn  which 
was  guarded  with  profound  veneration  because  according 
to  the  ancient  tradition  man  was  formed  from  it.  Cotton 
was  also  grown  and  brilliant  garments  woven  from  it  which 
were  dyed  with  cochineal  and  pigments  formed  from  various 
plants.  Tobacco  was  cultivated  and  yucca,  beans,  potatoes, 
etc.  Various  textiles  were  fabricated  of  the  finest  quality 
and  many  of  the  palaces  and  temples  were  hung  with  this 
tapestry. 

Ceramics  and  various  kinds  of  pottery  were  manufactured 
both  for  use  and  for  ornament.  The  sciences  and  the  arts 
were  developed.  The  fame  of  the  Quiche  calendar  exists 
today.  The  aborigines  also  understood  painting,  sculp- 
ture, and  music.  They  made  plumes  and  cloaks  from  the 
feathers  of  the  birds  and  they  wrote  upon  a  paper  prepared 
from  the  Amatl.  Their  language  was  liquid  and  possessed 
few  inflections.  It  was  the  most  perfect  of  the  six  hundred 
or  more  languages  which  the  Spaniards  encountered  in  the 
Isthmus  of  Central  America.  They  had  a  literature  of 
their  own  and  from  this  fragments  have  been  preserved 
notably  the  drama  "Rabinal  Achi." 


73 
/f    SPANISH    CONQUEST    AND    WHAT    CAME    AFTER. 

Guatemala  was  conquered  by  the  Lieutenant  of  Cortez, 
Pedro  de  Alvarado.  In  April,  1524,  he  crowned  his  series 
of  victories  over  the  Quiches  by  routing  them  on  the  plains 
of  Urbina,  capturing  and  condemning  to  perish  hy  hang- 
ing the  two  last  Kings  of  the  most  powerful  monarchy  of 
Central  America;  Oxib-Queh  and  Beleheb-Tzy.  In  July 
of  the  same  year  he  founded  the  city  of  Guatemala,  although 
this  was  not  definitely  established  until  November,  1527. 

Within  a  few  years  all  the  regions  of  Central  America 
had  submitted  to  the  Spanish  Crown  and  formed  the  King- 
dom of  Guatemala,  to  the  capital  of  which  was  transferred 
in  1549  the  Royal  Audiencia  or  High  Court.  Guatemala 
was  the  head  of  Spanish  power  in  Central  America  under 
the  general  term  of  the  Spanish  Captain  Generalcy  for  two 
and  a  half  centuries. 

During  the  two  hundred  and  fifty  years  following  the 
Conquest  the  country  had  three  capitals  in  turn,  all  named 
Guatemala  City.  The  first,  founded  by  Alvarado,  was  on 
the  very  spot  where  he  fought  the  battle  which  made  him 
conqueror.  The  Indian  kings  of  the  South  having  heard 
of  the  exploits  of  Cortez  in  Mexico,  sent  an  embassy  to  him 
which  he  received  with  distinction.  He  sent  his  favorite 
Lieutenant  Alvarado  back  to  take  possession.  Alvarado 
and  his  three  hundred  Spanish  soldiers  were  nearly  a  year 
in  making  the  journey  through  the  forest.  When  the 
Indians  opposed  him  he  gave  continuous  battle  and  finally 
conquered.  He  destroyed  their  capital,  razed  the  temple 
of  their  idols  to  the  ground,  and  built  on  its  site  a  church. 

For  seventeen  years  Alvarado  kept  the  Indians  at  work 
building  a  new  capital  on  the  site  of  their  old  one.  Then 
came  the  earthquake  which  destroyed  the  place  and  buried 
nine-tenths  of  the  inhabitants  under  the  ruins.  A  new 
location  was  found,  but  again,  in  1773,  by  the  eruption  of 
Santa  Maria  the  capital  was  destroyed.  This  is  the  group 
of  picturesque  ruins  now  known  as  La  Antigua.  With  the 
destruction  of  this  capital  a  third  and  final  movement  to 
the  splendid  situation  in  the  Hermit  Valley  was  made  and 


79 

the  new  capital  which  is  the  Guatemala  City  of  today  was 
established. 

After  years  of  struggle  against  the  Spanish  domination, 
beginning  in  1811,  Guatemala  secured  its  independence, 
which  was  proclaimed  September  15,  1821,  when  in  place 
of  the  Kingdom  of  Guatemala  there  was  established  "A 
nation  free  and  independent  of  every  other  nation."  The 
history  of  subsequent  years  is  interwoven  with  the  events 
of  other  Central  American  countries.  After  many  evolu- 
tions and  disorders  as  well  as  revolutionary  changes  of 
government,  the  era  known  as  the  period  of  reform  and  the 
re-establishment  of  the  liberties  of  the  country  began  in 
1871. 

CHAPTERS  OF  RECENT  HISTORY. 

The  events  which  led  to  the  adoption  of  the  liberal  Con- 
stitution of  1879,  which  is  today  in  force,  do  not  need  to 
be  recounted  here.  General  Justo  Rufino  Barrios,  who  had 
been  the  leading  spirit  in  the  Liberal  revolution,  was  a 
pronounced  advocate  of.  the  union  of  all  the  Central  Ameri- 
can States  in  a  single  federal  republic.  He  endeavored  to 
accomplish  this  against  the  opposition  of  Salvador  and 
was  killed  at  the  battle  of  Chalchuapa  in  1885.  He  was 
succeeded  by  General  Manuel  Lisandro  Barillas,  who  exer- 
cised the  government  from  1887  to  1892.  After  him  came 
General  Jose  Maria  Reyna  Barrios,  who  during  the  first 
four  years  of  his  administration  gave  a  good  government 
and  worked  much  for  the  prosperity  of  his  country.  In 
the  last  two  years,  however,  through  the  bad  counsels  of 
selfish  advisers  foreign  to  his  government  he  sought  to 
extend  the  term  of  his  authority  and  was  resisted  by  suc- 
cessive revolutions.  He  was  assassinated  by  a  personal 
enemy  of  European  nationality  in  February,  1898,  and 
Guatemala  was  then  left  in  the  midst  of  a  most  disastrous 
condition,  both  industrial  and  political. 

It  was  at  this  period  that  Manuel  Estrada  Cabrera,  the 
lawyer,  came  into  power  and  began  the  series  of  adminis- 
trative reforms  and  measures  for  the  material  develop- 


So 

ment  of  the  country  which  have  so  vastly  improved  the 
condition  of  the  people,  have  re-established  credit  and 
given  assurance  of  further  progress  under  continuous  peace 
and  tranquillity.  It  is  these  beneficial  measures  which  have 
caused  President  Estrada  Cabrera  to  be  signalized  as  the 
chief  of  the  modern  emancipation  of  Guatemala  in  its 
policies,  in  its  intellectual  and  moral  advancement,  and  as 
the  author  of  its  present  progress.  Under  his  government 
order  in  administration  has  been  secured,  respect  for  the 
rights  of  all,  material  development  in  countless  forms,  the 
general  improvement  of  the  people  and  the  most  perfect 
harmony  and  equity  in  international  relations  have  been 
obtained.  It  is  the  success  of  these^  policies,  which  is  now 
assured,  that  makes  Guatemala  so*  clearly  the  country  of 
the  future  and  entitles  Estrada  Cabrera  to  rank  with  the 
most  distinguished  heads  of  State  of  the  present  day  . 


I'NIYKRSITY   OF   (\M. IT- 


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GENERAL  LIBRARY 
UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA— BERKELEY 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 

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NS    1955  Ul 


WRY  2  9  1956  El 


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LD  21-100m-l,'54(1887sl6)47V**  "^ 


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